Unknown Memories
by Shizaya143
Summary: Sasuke gets a chance to go back to his academy days. However, what happens when he goes back to find the past he is in, isn't the past he remembers? Time Travel. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**I hope you guys like this story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

Sasuke stood in the dark cavern, his usual cold expression plastered on his face. The room, small, wet and dimly lit by the two torches on either side of the Uchiha tablet. It was silent, and he knew that everyone was taking in what he had just said.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Suigetsu asked Sasuke, disbelief clear in his voice.

"Yes, I do believe this is the only way." Sasuke said, confidence noticeable in his words. Although they wanted to protest their opposition of what Sasuke had suggested, they knew it was futile. When the Uchiha had set a goal he wouldn't stop until he achieved it and he wouldn't settle for anything other than what he wanted. It was one of the things that convinced them to join Hebi and stick with him through all the battles he had faced. Sasuke was a leader, one that didn't sway when he had made up his mind and although they wouldn't agree with him all of the time, somehow the raven seemed to achieve his goal in the end. Even now, with them being Team Taka, Suigetsu noted the clear determination in his voice.

"Well, Sasuke-kun what an interesting conclusion you have drawn." Orochimaru chuckled as the smirk grew on his face. "I presume you would like to hear about the details before we proceed?"

When everyone in the room had turned their attention towards the tall man, he continued. "Concerning the scroll, although I have had it in my possession for years, I haven't used it in the way you wish to, however that's not to say you can't." He clarified.

"Wai-wait, so you're going to use the scroll on Sasuke without knowing what will happen?" Suigetsu asked cautiously. "What if something happens to him and he never comes back, wait worse what if he comes back but he's not the same. I couldn't imagine a Sasuke that isn't an arrogant assho-" Suigetsu started to ramble before he was cut off by a glare from Sasuke.

"No need to worry, things wouldn't change for Sasuke-kun himself, although that doesn't mean that things won't be altered if he chooses to go through with this." Orochimaru explained.

"I've already decided, there's no need to delay this any longer." Sasuke said, irritation growing in his voice. Sasuke didn't really care what happened at this point, if the plan worked out it would save a lot of time and if it didn't work, well it couldn't be any worse than what had already happened.

"Well, shall we get started then?" Orochimaru asked and unrolled the scroll laying it on the ground of the once secret meeting place of the Uchiha's. The reason for the four of them choosing this place was simple really, they needed a place that had been untouched, a place that had been the same for years, more importantly a place that hadn't change from the time Sasuke was a child at the academy. Considering the whole village had been demolished during the Pein's invasion, the Uchiha's secret meeting place worked perfectly. Orochimaru slightly wondered if this place brought back any fond memories to the raven standing a few feet away. Sasuke had always been calm and collected when it came to his emotions, and as the older man observed the young Uchiha he noted that hadn't changed. Such a shame.

"A fair warning to you Sasuke-kun, once you have been sent back the only way you can return is if you obtain this scroll." He warned, a smirk on his face. Sasuke didn't bother to comment, opting to focus on the task at hand. "And even if you do, that doesn't mean you will be sent back to the future you remember."

"I know the risks." Sasuke said flatly. He knew what he was getting into, and after the farewell with his brother he wanted another chance. He wanted to truly understand what it mean to be a ninja for the village he had left behind, but now he was a criminal, an outlaw to the shinobi world and he had no chance in being accepted again. Or so he thought. This was his second chance to set things straight and he wouldn't let it slip through his hands.

"Well then, let's get started." Ororchimaru said and Sasuke began to perform the necessary hand signs that were written on the scroll before he bit his thumb drawing blood from it and swiping it across the scroll he was kneeling over. The last thing he saw was small flicker of one of the torches that illuminated the large stone tablet before everything went black.

* * *

Sasuke felt warm. He couldn't see anything but he could feel an overwhelming feeling of comfort. It was something he hadn't experienced in a long time.

Taking a deep breathe Sasuke slowly willed his eyes to open. He was greeted with a blinding light causing him to turn away from the window where said light was coming from. He shifted slowly in the warm bed before he froze. Bed. Window. Sun. These were all things that he definitely knew were not beside him a second ago. _Did it work?_

He pondered the answer as he looked around the room. The bed he was in was pushed up against one of the walls in the seemingly small apartment. From his spot on the bed he could easily see the rest of the apartment, there was a kitchen on the opposite side of the large room and it seemed to be equipped with the all the necessary appliances. He continued to survey the space and spotted a door a few meters away from where the kitchen ended, he guessed it must be the front door considering the room he was in seemed to be the whole apartment. Another door was located a few meters away from the bed he was sitting in, and he deduced that must lead to the bathroom. Stretching his arms above his head Sasuke finally looked down at what he was wearing and scowled.

He was currently sporting a light blue pajama top and matching bottom, which wasn't _that_ hideous but he knew one thing, he would never where it. Slowly swinging his legs to the side of the bed he let them dangle over the edge. Yes, dangle. The Uchiha at this point realized the jutsu had worked to some degree. The question now was where exactly was he? Getting up from his spot on the bed Sasuke walked around the room, he noticed a small sitting area with a coach and a few scattered magazines on the small table in front of it to his left. He walked up to the door he had spotted earlier and slowly turned the doorknob, pushing the door slowly he entered what looked like a small bathroom.

The mirror that was to his left caused Sasuke to stop and stare. He looked himself over and sighed, nothing had really changed in terms of his appearance. He still looked like himself, his hair and facial feature were all the same, the only difference was that he was smaller version of his older self. He noticed that his face also seemed to be relaxed, more innocent.

 _Beep, Beep, Beep_

He suddenly heard a loud sound coming from the bed and he exited the bathroom opting to check out what it was. Strolling back towards the bed Sasuke noticed an alarm clock and a calendar on the small table beside the bed. He pressed on the top of the clock to stop the instantaneous ringing and looked down towards the calendar.

As he read the date he froze, if it was any other day he probably would've dismissed it but today was one of the few days he remembered. The day he graduated from the academy.

Should I go? Sasuke question wondering if it really matter, but he soon realized that today was also the day he would meet his ' _new team'_. He couldn't help but feel a rush of emotions, happiness, anger, regret, and the list goes on. But this time was his second chance, this was his chance to set things straight. He would be the ninja he had originally though he would grow up to be, he would find out why Itachi and so many others would fight and die for this village and he wouldn't make the same mistakes he had made before.

Sasuke quickly made his bed and walked over to the dresser that was against the window next to his bed. As he pulled one of the drawers open he was greeted with a mess of clothes, he could feel his eyebrow twitch as he looked at the un-orderly state of the drawer. Did he really live here?

After a few minutes of rummaging through the mess he finally found a dark blue shirt, similar to the one he used to wear when he was younger, and a pair of black shorts. Once he was satisfied with the way he looked he glanced over at the time and realized that class was about to start, walking over to the coffee table near the couch he picked up the headband he had noticed earlier. Looking it over he tied it around his head, the material against his forehead felt oddly comfortable, but he paid it no heed as he walked over to the kitchen. For the most part the apartment was clean, he guessed that he lived alone so if somethings were messy he would be the one to clean it up. And although he was an Uchiha that didn't mean he cared to be a perfectionist all the time, although many didn't know that.

He opened the small fridge and looked inside to see it was almost empty, sighing Sasuke closed it and started to look through the cabinets and noticed mostly instant food and a few granola bars that were usually used when ninjas went on long missions. Grabbing one, he exited the apartment through the window as he realized that he would have to lock the front door if he left that way, and well he didn't know where the key was. Once on the roof just outside his window Sasuke looked around. He knew he was in Konoha, that much was obvious by now but what he wasn't expect was his apartment was in the part of the village many people didn't come too often. Although Konoha didn't experience poverty, there was an obvious division between the houses in Konoha and he could tell his place was on the lower class of the spectrum.

With the new-found information Sasuke only had more questions. As he looked up from his spot on the roof he realized he could see almost all of the village. It was like he remembered, nothing seemed to change and Sasuke let a small smile grace his face before he realized he should hurry if he wanted to on time for class. Quickly he jumped from to roof to roof until he could see the Academy.

He could see the kids rushing towards the Academy doors and decided to follow, pushing his hands into his pockets as he did so. He walked until he arrived at the classroom he had spent years in. Pulling the door open he walked in, many kids were out of their desks, talking to friends or walking about since class hadn't yet started and others were seated silently in their desk as they nervously waited for class to begin. As Sasuke walked in he noticed his old Sensei from the Academy smiling at him an as he approached the man the other began to speak.

"Wow Sasuke-kun, I'm surprised you made it on time today." Iruka chuckled, "Could it be that you're excited to see whose team you're in?" The taller man said in a teasing tone. Sasuke was slightly taken back at the carefree way his Sensei had spoken to him, although the older man had been his Academy teacher he never had a close relationship with him; but by the way Iruka was talking to him now he deemed that to be false, at least in this past.

"Hn." Sasuke responded. He could only assume that the way he acted in _this past,_ was the same as when he had been a child in his own past, was he wrong.

"Quiet aren't you? That's a surprise." Iruka said before he placed his hand on Sasuke's head and brushed his hair affectionately. "Don't worry there's no need to be nervous, I'm sure you'll make friends with your new teammates in no time." He said before ushering Sasuke to go sit down.

The only thing Sasuke could do was nod his head and walk towards the desks in front of him. He slowly ascended the wide steps until he reached his spot. Pulling the chair back he sat down and placed his two elbows on the table, entangling his fingers together as he rested his head atop them. Looking around the classroom he noticed the familiar faces of his former comrades. Choji, Shikamaru, Kiba, Hinata as well as some students that he had known for years but hadn't bothered to talk or acknowledge them.

A small sigh of relief flooded through Sasuke as he realized that although there were a few things off, most of the things so far were exactly like his past. That is until he felt a small tap on his shoulder and turned to see who it was. As he did he froze, standing in front of him with a scowl and arms crossed over his chest was none other than Uzumaki Naruto. It took Sasuke to take in the sight of the blonde idiot but once he did he soon realized that the blonde was far from happy to see him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Naruto asked, clearly annoyed at something Sasuke had done.

"Excuse me?" Sasuke asked both angry at the fact that the blonde boy seemed to talking down at him and confused at what the other was referring to. Sasuke watched as Naruto lifted one of his hands and pointed to the seat Sasuke was sitting in, "What are you doing in my seat, dobe?"

Sasuke looked up at the scowl on the others face and realized the boy was serious.

 _His seat? Since when did Naruto sit here? Hadn't Sasuke been sitting here for the past couple years?_ Sasuke question but what really struck him was the annoyingly familiar nickname the blonde had referred to him as. _Dobe. Yes, dobe. The clingy, loud-mouthed Naruto Uzumaki had just called him a dobe._

Before Sasuke could open his mouth again he heard another familiar voice coming towards the two boys. "Saasukee!" Sakura yelled as he stomped over to his desk. "What do you think you're doing in Naruto-kun's desk?" She said angrily.

 _Even Sakura has changed?_ Sasuke thought as he watched the girl fume at him. _Definitely. She would never have done that to me when we were younger._ He thought as he looked up at the angry expression on the pink haired girl. Before Sasuke could respond to the angry comment they were interrupted by a clap from Iruka.

"Okay students, take your seats. We're about to start." Iruka said

Sasuke decided that there was no use arguing. Now usually Sasuke wouldn't be the one to back down but as he got up from the chair and sat on the one next to it he realized that he was attracting some attention. Which was not what he wanted.

"Ssasukeee, move!" Sakura demanded once again. "I want to sit beside Naruto-kun."

Despite not wanting to attract attention, he wasn't going to sit by and let the girl treat him like this. "Does it matter Sakura?" He said coldly not bothering to look up at his former teammate. "It's not like class is going to last long anyways. We're getting out teams today."

He expected the girl to explode at him again but instead she stood there shocked at what the raven had said. Sasuke guessed the Sasuke in this universe had never talked to the girl that way before and she was too shocked to comprehend the sudden change in his personality.

"Hmph, Fine." She said crossing her arms across her chest "But don't think you'll get away with something like that. Just because you barely were able to get that headband doesn't change anything."

"Unlike Naruto-kun, who easily passed the graduation exam with flying colors" She said clasping her hands together as she looked at Naruto. Sasuke chose to ignore the earlier insult and looked over towards the blonde. The boy either hadn't heard the complement or paid it no heed as he waited for the class to start, an indifferent expression on his face.

By this point Sasuke had caught on to the change in both his former teammate's personalities and his personality in this time. Sakura was controlling and bossy when it came to him and sweet and nice when it came to Naruto. She looked at the blonde boy with a longing gaze and wanted him to notice her. Naruto, from what he could tell, was cold and distant, didn't say much and seemed to be angry from some reason. He looked at Sasuke as someone below him and he didn't seem to have much respect for him.

As for him, he lived alone, seemed to be friendly with Iruka, and his teammates treated him like they both much rather not be around him. Rubbing one of his temple Sasuke realized just what was happening. He and Naruto had switched. To clarify, the Sasuke here was the Naruto back in his universe and vice versa. _How is this even possible?_ His thoughts as he contemplated what he was going to do. _Would he really want to live in this reality?_

"Okay, now let's start with the teams." He said before he started to call out the different names. Sasuke didn't bother to pay much attention for the most part.

"Team 7, Naruto Uzumaki." Iruka began and the class exploded into hush whispers. He could catch a few comments from the kids around him.

"I want be on his team, it'd be so easy."

"No, wouldn't he steel all the glory? He's beyond strong, it wouldn't be fair."

"Please quiet down class!" Iruka said before he continued. "Sakura Haruno."

As soon as the Sakura's name was called she shot up from her seat excitedly. Sasuke could hear a few disappointed sighs from a few of the girls in the class and he couldn't help but feel grateful that he didn't have to deal fangirls crowding around him this time around.

"Sasuke Uchiha." At hearing his name Sakura groaned and sat back down. "Your Jonin sensei will be Kakashi Hatake."

"Team 8, Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuuga, Shino Akamaru." He stated and Sasuke was happy that the teams didn't seem to change "Your Jonin sensei is Kurenai Yuhi."

Eventually they got to the last team Sasuke cared to listen for. "Team 10, Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamenaka, Shikamaru Nara." Iruka said " Asuma Sarutobi with be your Jonin sensei."

"Okay class that will be all. Wait in the class until your sensei arrives." Iruka said before he exited the class room.

 _Kakashi, huh._ Sasuke thought as he recalled the many memories of the silver-haired Jonin. More importantly the last time he had seen the man, his eyes looked down as he tried to hide the small tinge of guilt that rushed through him.

"You know him?" He heard a voice demand and Sasuke looked up to see Naruto staring at him. The other boy had his elbows propped on the table, his fingers intertwined together, much like the way he had been previously sitting. It took him a few seconds to realize that the boy had heard his earlier comment, so much for thinking in his mind.

"Ah, sort of. I've just heard about him." He lied knowing that the Kakashi in this universe wasn't necessarily the one he knew.

"Hn." Naruto said before he went back to ignoring him.

Eventually the students slowly began to leave, team by team, as their Sensei's came to pick on them. As to be expected team seven was the last team left and Sasuke guessed somethings never changed when it came to Kakashi.

"Ugh, where is Kakashi- sensei?" Sakura complained.

"Hey, why don't test out how strong our new Jonin sensei really is?" Sasuke suggested. He knew that if it was his universe he would never dream of doing something this stupid, but considering that he had to repeat his past again, there was no harm in having a little fun along the way.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, obviously interested. He could also see the interested stare in Naruto's face as he awaited Sasuke to explain what he meant.

"Just watch." Sasuke said as he walked up to the chalkboard and grabbed one of the erasers. Walking up to the door he wedged it between the door, letting himself smile a bit as he imagined Kakashi's face when it dropped on his head for the second time.

"That would never work." Naruto stated, un-amused at the childish prank. "He's a Jonin Sensei not an idiot."

"Y-yeah, he'll never fall for that." Sakura agreed but Sasuke could tell the girl was trying her best not to laugh.

As Sakura said that they watched as a hand pulled the door open, each of them waiting to see if the prank would work. They watched as the eraser fell down and landed atop the older man's head, before it fell to the ground.

"I told you it would work." Sasuke said as he held back a laugh.

"I'm sorry, Sensei." Sakura said innocently, "I tried to stop him, but Sasuke did it on his own."

Sasuke ignored the fact that Sakura placed all the blame on him as he watched Naruto's expression. It was obvious he was not amused or impressed. The three of them watched Kakashi bend down and pick up the forgotten eraser before he placed it on a nearby desk. The man looked the same, everything from the mask to the headband protector covering one of his eyes.

"How can I put this?" Kakashi started, placing a hand on his chin." As for my first impression of you guys..."

"Well, I hate you." he bluntly stated. "Meet me on the roof, in a few minutes." The man said before he turned and exited the room, leaving the three Genin in his wake.


	2. Chapter 2

Sasuke slowly made his way towards the rooftop. He was slightly aware that Sakura and Naruto had passed him on the way up, but he didn't care. Right now he was trying to figure out what he was going to do about his current situation. He was happy that he could see his former teammates, but the fact that they treated him different made him wonder if this was truly what he wanted. He expected to come back to the past he had loved and had come to miss, but this was not it.

"Sassukkee!" He heard Sakura yell at him from the top of the stairway that lead to the roof. "Hurry up, Kakashi-sensei is waiting for us."

Sasuke resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he watched Sakura wait for him at the top of the stairs, her hands placed on either sides of her waist and her expression was twisted into a glare.

"Go ahead without me." He simply stated and watched the girl turn around and storm off.

 _I assume she's not used to being treated like this. The Naruto in his time probably would've been happy to be acknowledged by the girl, he always did have a thing for her._ Sasuke mused as he finally arrived at the door that lead to the roof, he pushed it open and walked onto the sunny roof.

"Happy that you could join us." He heard Kakashi say teasingly and decided not to comment, instead he took a seat on one of the steps next to his teammates. "Okay, now. First off, let me have you guys introduce yourselves."

"Introduce ourselves..." Sakura questioned. "What should we say?"

"Your likes, dislikes, your future dream, hobbies, things like that." Kakashi suggested.

"Hey, before that, please tell us about yourself." Sakura said accusingly.

"Me? My name's Kakashi Hatake…" He started off. "I don't feel like telling you guys about my likes and dislikes. I've never really thought about my future dream... As for my hobbies, I have many."

Sasuke held back the urge to laugh at his Sensei's little speech. It was just like he remembered, it didn't tell them much and in the end left then with only his name.

"In the end, he just told us his name." Sakura whispered to the two boys, although Naruto didn't bother to respond and Sasuke only gave her a small nod.

"Let's start with you." He pointed to Naruto and all eyes turned to the blonde.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I don't like very much, and I dislike many things. I don't have a dream, rather I have a goal that I will achieve. As for hobbies, I have none."

"And things you like?"

"Not worth mentioning." Naruto said dismissively.

Sasuke shifted a little where he was sitting as he heard Naruto's introduction. It was oddly close to what he had said as a child, but what struck him was the tone the young genin had used. It was filled with hate and anger, something he knew all too well.

"Okay" Kakashi said, taking in what the other had said before he turned to Sakura.

Sasuke watched the action and came to the conclusion that Kakashi was merely observing the three of them, he could tell the man had some idea where Naruto's anger was coming from, but didn't bother to comment on it. He knew the Jonin was observing them, taking in the way they interacted with each other, and of course the way they spoke.

"Next."

"I'm Sakura Haruno, What I like... I mean, who I like is..." Sakura started to say before she looked over at Naruto, a blush on her face. "And, my hobby is, I mean..." She continued, stealing glances at the blonde boy as she spoke.

"My future dream is..." She said, letting out a small scream. Sasuke sighed inwardly as he watched the girl fangirl over the blonde and couldn't help but feel a bit grateful that he wasn't the one that was receiving her affection. As much as he respected her, he never was attracted to the girl in that way, he guessed it was because his mind was so set on killing his brother, he never really had the interest in girls.

"And, what about your dislikes?" Kakashi asked, in a stern yet bored tone.

"Sasuke!" She said, obviously annoyed. Sasuke merely shot the girl a glare, but didn't bother to comment.

"And lastly..." Kakashi continued.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke started, deciding he would just have to go with it and hope he didn't draw too much suspicion.

"I like many things, and don't particularly dislike much. My dreams for the future, well, I want to truly understand what it means to be a shinobi of this village. I'll make sure I live a life without regrets." Sasuke said, determination in his voice. "As for hobbies..." Sasuke started before he trailed off, trying to think about what he had liked to do as a kid.

"I've heard enough." Kakashi interrupted the boy. "The three of you are very distinctive and interesting."

Sasuke relaxed a bit as he heard Kakashi move on, he guessed he was convincing enough.

"We'll have a mission tomorrow." He said and Sasuke sighed knowing just what Kakashi was referring to. The bell test.

"What kind of mission is it?" He asked, wondering if the man would actually tell them.

"First, we'll do what we can do with just four people." Kakashi told them.

"And that is?" Sasuke asked again.

"A survival exercise."

"Why are we doing a survival exercise even though this is supposed to be a mission? We've had more than our share of exercises in the Academy." Sakura complained.

"This isn't a simple exercise." He told them.

"What exercise is it?" Naruto finally spoke up, obviously interested. But instead of the response he was expecting he simply watched as his teacher began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sakura demanded, mad at this point.

"Uh, well, if I tell you, I know you'll grow disenchanted." He said in between laughs.

 _Oh he's loving this._ Sasuke thought as he watched the man hold back another laugh. "Of the twenty-seven graduates, only nine will be recognized as true Genin's. The remaining eighteen will be sent back to the Academy."

"In other words, this exercise is extremely difficult test with a failure rate of 66% or higher." He said, his voice cold and intimidating. Sasuke wasn't bothered by the warning, he knew he could pass easily, but he wondered if the other two would be willing to work with him. Unlike in his own time, these two weren't very fond of him and if they were expected to work together, he would have to figure out a way to build his bonds with them.

"Wait, then what was the graduation exam for?" Sakura asked.

"Oh that, it was just to select those who have the potential of becoming Genin." He said, simply. "Bring your Ninja tools, we meet tomorrow morning at five."

"Okay, you're dismissed." He said "Oh, and you probably shouldn't have breakfast tomorrow. You'll throw up." He finished as his voice sent shivers through the two Genin that were sitting on opposite sides of Sasuke, even the raven himself still felt a tinge of fear shoot through him. Although, it wasn't for the same reason that caused his former teammates to feel fear, no. The last time he heard his Sensei talk to him like that was after his fight with Danzo.

 _"How far you've fallen Sasuke."_

That time, as he stood in front of his former Sensei he hadn't realized how far they had grown apart. At the time, he had believed that Kakashi and everyone else in the village was against him, they pitied him when he was younger yet they had cause all the hardships he had gone through.

Now, thinking back it was naive to think that there was anything anyone could've done. The Uchiha had made up their minds and although it was a foolish dream to go against the village, it was what they had decided. Sasuke didn't bother to contemplate if they were the ones at fault or if it was ultimately the villages fault, no, they were already dead and it would be useless to wonder if their deaths were pointless.

Sasuke sat there for a moment before he was interrupted by a loud Sakura.

"Naruto-kun, would you like to hang out and get to know each other?" She said hopefully. What she got was a blunt "no" before the blonde got up and started to walk towards the door that lead to the stairs. Sasuke watched the boy do this before he got up himself, deciding to figure out what else has changed in this past, more importantly what happened to his family.

* * *

Before he knew it he had jumped off the roof, jumping along the roof tops until he got to the apartment again. As he jumped from each roof, he realized that he was actually pretty fast, not as fast as he was before he was sent back in time, but that was to be expected. His body wasn't used to what his mind was telling him to do and soon realized if he didn't get them in sync he would be in trouble.

It was weird, how his mind would react faster than his body, which ultimately threw off his balance. But once he had realized the problem, he quickly fixed it. It was odd to tell himself to react slower, take a few extra seconds to get his footing before he pushed off again towards another roof top, but he knew it had to be done.

The speed he was going at was fast, but compared to what he was used to, it felt almost impossibly slow. He wished he could go faster, but knew that if he pushed himself without his body being properly trained, it would result in failure.

Finally arriving to at his apartment, Sasuke entered through the window once again, making sure to lock it behind him. He walking into the kitchen and shuffled through the shelves once again, before he finally found some decently edible food.

Instant Ramen.

He looked down at the cup of dried noodles and sighed. It had been a long day of waiting, and considering he hadn't had lunch, he was starving. He would eat anything right now, and surprisingly the ramen didn't sound so bad. Although the food itself left him with a bittersweet feeling.

 _If only the dobe was here to see this_. He thought before pulling off the paper cover and setting the cup aside. He looked around the kitchen before he spotted a small kettle in one of the cabinets and pulled it out to fill it with water. About five minutes later, Sasuke stood in his kitchen, chopsticks in hand, eating the pork flavored ramen.

After he finished his meal he decided that he should probably go out and by some food to stock up his fridge. He could only guess the other him was probably clueless about cooking, considering Naruto had been a complete idiot when it came to cooking when they were kids. He had only been in the dobe's apartment a few times, but every time he had gone, there had been empty containers and expired milk cartons scatter around.

Shivering a bit at the disgusting memory, Sasuke looked around the room before walked over to the table in front of the couch. It had various things scattered on it, one being money and he snatched the small amount of cash up before he spotted a key.

"Finally." Sasuke said as he picked up the key that had been underneath a few magazines. He had gotten tired of using his window as a door and was glad he would be able leave through the door like a normal person.

Although he had recalled Kakashi entering through windows quite frequently when he was a kid.

Without pondering the thought much longer, Sasuke left the apartment and headed to the shopping district.

* * *

Most of the people of Konoha bought their fresh produced from various different vendors along the different strips of the shopping district and Sasuke felt an almost a familiar wave of happiness wash through him as he noticed the place hadn't changed.

He had started off going around, grabbing the different foods he recalled he liked as a child. He had had to learn to support himself when he lost his family and at first he refused to eat at all but once he realized that he needed to survive to fulfill his goal to kill his brother he started to learn how to cook. He wasn't the best cook, but he knew he was at least better than a certain blonde idiot he knew.

He walked from cart to cart buying the different fruits and vegetables until he realized that he didn't have much money left. Deciding it was probably best to go home with what he had already gotten and come back another day when he had more money, Sasuke turned to walk towards his apartment.

"Hey, you there." Someone shouted and Sasuke turned to see what the problem was.

"Kid, where do you think you're going?" An old man said as he walked up to Sasuke. He was wearing an apron and looked to be like one of the vendors.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke said as he turned to face the man.

"Those bags, you stole something from my shop and stuffed it one of your bags." The man said as he attempted to grab one of the bags Sasuke had been holding, but the raven took a few steps back before the man had the chance.

"Huh?" Sasuke asked more in disbelief than in confusion. "What are you talking about, I didn't steal anything."

"Oh yeah right." The old vendor continued. "Like I'd believe anything an Uchiha like you would say."

"What did you say?" Sasuke asked, getting more annoyed by the man's ignorance by the second. _What did he mean by an Uchiha like him?_

"You heard me, you're the last of those scumbags and you're trying to steal from me. As to be expected from your kind." He continued and Sasuke felt the man push him down, grabbing one of the bag he had been holding and ripped it out of his hands. The raven could easily fight back but he was shocked by what the man had just said.

 _Scumbags?_ Sasuke thought as about what the man had said. _As expected from your kind? Was he referring to the Uchiha clan?_ He had so many questions but knew that none of them would be answered by the livid man in front of him.

"What are you doing, give that back." Sasuke said as he attempted to grab the bag back from his position on the ground but the man kicked him in the gut to stop him. The kick wasn't strong enough to inflict too much damage and Sasuke was able to block a bit of it with his forearm but he could tell that the old man had been trying to injure him badly. If he wasn't a ninja he probably wouldn't have been able to block.

"Hey, what's going on?" Sasuke heard someone say and turned to see a women rushing to where the two of them were as others followed behind her.

 _Finally someone who can tell this man off_. Sasuke thought as he looked up at the glaring man.

"This little brat was trying to steal from me." The man said as he held up the bag in his hand.

"No, I wasn-" Sasuke began before he noticed the women glare down at him. He looked behind her to see similar glares and scowls grace both the vendors and civilians faces.

"Why should I believe someone like you? I saw you take it." The man said before he added. "We know you have stolen from others before."

Sasuke sat there disbelieving what he was hearing. _Him?_

The raven didn't say anything as a realization dawned on him.

 _This was what Naruto must've experienced when he was a child. Hateful villagers attacking him for things he didn't do and no one to stick up for him when they crowded around and accused him._

Realizing this, Sasuke got up and brushed off his clothes.

"Fine, take it." He said in a dismissive tone before turned around and walked away. He could hear the shouts of different people telling him _'They had been right, he had stolen the food.'_ as he walked away.

Sasuke didn't pity himself, nor did he feel anger well up inside of him. He only felt an odd sense of admiration for the blonde boy that had to endure this for years.


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke settled the bag of food down on the counter top as he leaned forward to place both of his hands on the cool surface.

He began to recall the encounter he had with the villagers and frowned.

It truly hadn't occur to him what Naruto had had to endure when he was a kid. He was subjected to bullies both adults and children alike and shunned because of something he had no control over. Sasuke hadn't known Naruto had the Kyuubi locked inside of him until their battle at the Valley of the End, but he could imagine what it felt like to be labeled as an outcast. Although he didn't have to go through the same shunning as a child, he could relate to the boys feelings of loneliness.

He sighed knowing he was thinking too much into the past. It has already happened and Naruto had been able to overcome all the hatred that was thrown towards him as a result of the Kyuubi attacking many years ago. Either way, it wouldn't help him in to dwell on the past because he was planning to rewrite it. Get the answers to the questions he had been asking himself since his fight with Itachi.

But he also needed questions about this universe answered.

 _Why did the old man from earlier seem to hate him? Why did he label him as a brat merely on the fact that he was an Uchiha? More importantly, what happened to his clan? To his mother and father? To his brother? Did history repeat itself in this universe? Did Itachi kill them and join the Akatsuki for the sake of the village?_

So many questions popped into his mind as he began to ponder the differences of this universe. Surely there were things that didn't add up. Sasuke couldn't have the Kyuubi locked inside of him, no. That wouldn't make sense. But then why was he hated so much.

Sighing he pushed off of the counter and decided the best way to figure things out was to look around his apartment first. He gave the place a look over before heading to the table he had found the money on earlier, there were a bunch of things scattered about but upon a closer inspection they were all useless in helping him figure anything out. There were wrappers and empty containers near the foot of the table and Sasuke suppressed the urge to roll his eyes at the mess.

 _He truly was like Naruto_. He thought and began to pick up the wrappers before he headed back to the kitchen to throw it away. Deciding there he wouldn't find anything that would help him in plain sight he walked towards the bed and settled himself down before he turned to the bedside table. Pulling the small drawer open, he looked inside to see the contents.

A picture of his family lay on one side of the drawer and Sasuke hesitated before he picked the photo up.

It seemed like the picture was taken around the time he had started attending the academy because of the bag slung over his shoulder as four of them stood in front of the building of the school.

 _Were they still alive?_ Sasuke questioned realizing that there was a chance his parents, even his whole clan, were still alive.

He turned to look out the window and noticed that the sun was about to set. He knew he probably should wait for tomorrow to go visit the barracks where his family used to live, but he couldn't wait that long. He wasn't patient enough to wait and see what had happened to them.

Making up his mind, Sasuke closed the drawer and walked towards his dresser. After rummaging through the different drawers, Sasuke finally found a black sweater that bore the Uchiha symbol on its back. He pulled it over his head before he rose his hands in front of him and began to perform different seals reciting the Jutsu he intended to use out loud.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." He said before a poof of smoke appeared in front of him. Once it cleared there was a clone -dressed in a pair of pyjamas, similar to the ones he had woken up in- standing in front of him with an indifferent expression on his face. He made sure to hide his chakra signature the moment the clone appeared, making sure only one signature was being detected in his apartment.

"Stay here and act like you're at home. In about an hour's time go to bed." Sasuke instructed. He knew that if Kakashi decided to check up on him later that night the man would be suspicious if he wasn't in bed. It was an extra precaution because of the fact he didn't want to draw attention to himself when it wasn't needed.

Deciding he should probably get going, Sasuke headed to the door. But paused realizing it would be better to exit through the window, just in case anyone noticed him leaving through his front door. Before he left however, he walked towards the bathroom and opened the door. He turned towards the large mirror mounted on the wall above the sink and looked himself over.

He looked the same as he had this morning, only a bit of tiredness showing underneath his eyes, but he didn't dwell on it too long. Instead, he closed his tired eyes and focused his chakra into them.

Did he still have his sharingan? And if he did, what stage was it in?

His questions were answered when he opened his eye and looked at his reflection. The unique pattern of his Mangekyou Sharingan looking back at him. As soon as he came to the realization he felt a sharp pain surge through him and he immediately closed his eyes, clenching at his head as he felt the pain pounding through his skull. Controlling his chakra, he focused it away from his eyes until Sasuke felt the pain subside, before it disappeared altogether.

When he reopened his eyes he noticed his black pupils staring back at him. Running a hand through his hair he sighed as he came to the conclusion his eyes would be useless at the moment. It had taken him years to train and hone his eyes and more importantly, build up the chakra reserve that was able to sustain the enormous amount of chakra that was needed to use them. Which meant they wouldn't be of use at the moment, not that he thought of it as a problem.

He needed to focus on building his strength and slowly revive his chakra reserves.

For now he wouldn't tell anyone he had the sharingan, although he knew that no one would ask. He only had to be careful around his Jonin sensei who made it his business to know what happened to him.

Walking out of the bathroom, Sasuke headed towards his window. He opened the window, not bothering to turn around and check on his clone. He could sense the ' _other Sasuke_ ' sitting on his couch and he made sure that his own chakra signature was hidden. He didn't want people to get suspicious if someone was keeping an eye on the different chakra signature in his apartment. It would be too obvious if suddenly there were two signature and one of them disappeared.

He knew he was being cautious but the raven didn't care, if he was going to get information he would have to be sneaky. It would be odd if he suddenly started asking questions about things that were common knowledge, such as what happened to his family. If they were alive or dead it would be known by everyone.

But he knew the small hope he had originally had was slipping away as he recalled the incident back in the shopping district.

 _You're the last of those scumbags and you're stealing from me._

 _He was the last?_

Tired of asking himself questions that he couldn't answer, Sasuke lifted himself up onto the window sill, crouching as he peered out the open window. He pulled the hood of his sweater over his head to obscure his face as he jumped onto the roof below. Once he landed Sasuke straighten his body up until he was standing straight. He quickly turned around motioning to his clone.

"Close the window while I'm gone." He said in a hush voice before he pushed himself off the roof, jumping quietly from roof to roof. It was a pleasant trip from his apartment as he watched the sunset in horizon and soon he noticed how the sky turned from a red-orange to a dark blue until it turned completely black. He watched as the stars became visible in the night sky as he made the long journey to the Uchiha compound.

Sasuke hadn't realized it at first, but where his apartment was located was far away from where he remember the compound was and wondered if he had chosen the apartment location on purpose. He highly doubted it considering his original apartment as a child had been in the central area of the village. The third Hokage had given him the option of choosing where he wanted to live out of courtesy but now that he looked back he realized that it was probably out of obligation for what Itachi had done.

Scowling a bit at the memory Sasuke finally noticed the familiar entrance to the Uchiha compound up ahead, the trees lining the stone pathway to the place that was so familiar to him yet now so distant.

Jumping down from an adjacent rooftop Sasuke walked along the pathway until he arrived at the entrance. At first he hadn't been able to notice the yellow tape that covered the doorway to the compound but soon realized that the entrance had been blocked off.

 _So it did happen_. Sasuke thought as he looked at the familiar tape.

Pulling the tape up Sasuke ducked underneath it to enter the compound. Once inside he froze at what he saw. There, where he once had seen the different houses of his clan members' stand, were now burned to bits. Houses looked like they were falling apart and charred wooden panels lay on the ground. Everything was in ashes.

It took the raven a full minute to comprehend what he was seeing. But once he had, the question that had been on his mind the whole time finally came to surface.

"What happened?" he asked as he looked upon the rubble.

He slowly walked forward to the piles of debris that lined the pathway until he was standing in front of the familiar doorway of a house. Or what had been a house. Everything was charred and covered in black ashes and Sasuke couldn't help but wonder what had happened.

 _A fire? Had the compound been attacked?_ Sasuke questioned but then he wondered why the hatred in the village was so strong. _If they had merely died from a fire then why did they hate him?_

Stepping forward he walked into what used to be the front entrance to his house. Sasuke could tell the incident must have occurred sometime ago from the looks of things and he wondered why nothing had been cleaned up. Everything seemed to be untouched, like this had happened recently, but the raven knew better than to think that way. This had differently been months old, maybe even years. He noted there was mold growing on some pieces of wood and frowned at the realization that this had happened some ago.

 _So they died from a fire_. He came to the conclusion _,_ _but then it dawned on him,_ _had it been planned? Had the orders been different? Had Itachi set the place ablaze in an attempt to stop the coup d'état?_

Just before he could venture any further he was overcome by a haunting feeling as if someone was watching him. Whipping his head around, he tried to sense where the presence was coming from and then spotted a shuffle in some trees. For the untrained eyes it would merely look like the wind blowing on the leaves making them move, but Sasuke wasn't untrained; he still had the same sensory skills as he had as a teenager.

Without hesitating the raven jumped towards a nearby tree, making sure the figure was following behind him. He couldn't sense the ninja, but he did notice the sight shifts in the branches behind him as the person landed atop them.

 _I'm being followed._ Sasuke thought as he jumped from each tree, making sure his speed didn't flatter. He knew he couldn't outrun the person, but that didn't mean he couldn't lose them. Before long, he arrived at a clearing that lead to the busy night district of Konoha. Different bars and casinos lined the streets and Sasuke sighed in relief as he jumped down from the branch he had been standing on and into the crowd of people shuffling below.

 _Who was following him? And more importantly why?_


	4. Chapter 4

Sasuke walked cautiously along the streets. He was glad he didn't stand out with his dark clothing. The only problem he had to worry about was if someone he knew happened to bump into him. Luckily for him he didn't know much adults aside from his teachers from the academy.

Walking at a moderate pace Sasuke made his way through the groups of people that crowded around the restaurants. He made sure he didn't turn back to check if anyone was following him. It would be too obvious. If he was suddenly stopped by the person that was trailing him, he would need have some sort of an excuse to make his whole story believable. But how could he explain why was in a district of Konoha that was no where near where he lived and only included restaurants and bars? His mind was shuffling through the possible excuses he could say, but none made any real sense.

Continuing along the street, Sasuke walked in an almost bored manner, in hopes of making his demeanor look natural. He glanced down towards the ground as he walked, pushing his hands in his pocket and slumping his shoulders forward.

After a few long minutes of walking Sasuke realized he was getting closer to a less populated area of the village. He noted there were less restaurants and more apartments now, and knew if he kept going he would eventually be in the area he had once lived in. His former apartment had been located in the middle of the village, near all the major districts and Sasuke scowled as he realized he was getting backed into a corner. He was no where near his apartment and although it was late it made no sense for him to suddenly head back, especially when he wasn't sure if he had been able to lose the person trailing him. By this point he could tell the person was either an ANBU or a ninja that was at least a Jonin. He couldn't sense their chakra signature, but he still had that feeling he was being followed.

Sasuke glanced up towards the sky and noticed the moon was full. From the looks of things he could tell it was around 10 o'clock. Around this time he would probably be in bed and he could imagine his clone making it's way to bed, not that it matter anymore though. Whoever was following would no doubt report their findings to some higher up of the village which ultimately made his little plan useless. Though, for the small chance the person hadn't already identified him the clone would prove to be useful.

"Dobe?" He suddenly heard and looked up to see a familiar blond holding a few bags in his hands. He froze for a second before he realized that he was staring. _Why was Naruto here?_ He questioned before he responded to the annoyingly familiar nickname.

"Naruto, why are you here?" Sasuke asked, voicing his earlier question.

"I should be asking you that question." The blonde said glaring at him before he turned to the apartment building behind him. "I live here, not that you would know that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sasuke said as he glared at the boy. He was starting to miss the oddly clingy loudmouthed Naruto he had grown up with, this one was too arrogant and honestly someone he didn't want to deal with right now.

"Don't you live on the other side of the village?" Naruto asked, although it was more like stating a fact. _How did the dobe even know that?_

"Why do y-" Sasuke began to ask before he heard a loud grumble and blinked. It took him a few seconds before he realized that it was coming from his empty stomach. After he had come to the conclusion he could feel the blood rush to his pale cheeks and tried his best to suppress the impending blush.

"Hn, what they don't feed you enough?" The boy in front of him said and Sasuke could imagine the smirk on his face before he saw it.

"Does it matter? It's not like you care." Sasuke spat back bitterly.

"You're right I don't." Naruto said coldly before he turned to head towards the apartment. Before he could however, he was stopped by a hand on his wrist.

"Wait." Sasuke said suddenly and the blonde turned to shoot the other a glare before he pulled his hand from the others grip.

"What?" Naruto demanded in an annoyed tone.

"I was wondering..." Sasuke began as he realized there was no turning back now. "if you wanted to hang out or something..."

"Excuse me?"

"Since, we're teammates now we'd probably need to work together, so..." the raven trailed off again looking to the side in an almost embarrassed manner and he hoped the boy in front of him was buying the act. "We should hang out and get to know each other."

Sasuke finished as he looked down towards the ground below. He didn't care if Naruto rejected his offer, he was just glad he had finally been able to come up with an excuse that would make sense.

He would say he had gone to visit his new teammate in hopes of becoming friends. It was a weak reason, but Sasuke noted that it didn't really matter. Naruto always had stupid ideas and reasoning's when he was younger, and he only hoped that would pass for this times Sasuke.

"Sure." He heard suddenly and shot up to meet Naruto's eyes. Although the boys face looked indifferent Sasuke could see the small lines around his eyes that looked like he was smiling.

"Let's go." Naruto continued as he turned once again to walked towards the entrance. The raven stood there for a few seconds before he noticed the blonde turn his head slightly to look over his shoulder. He was suspicious about why exactly Naruto was willing to invite him over so easily but pushed it aside as he listened him speak. "You coming, Uchiha? Or are you going to just stand there staring like and idiot."

"Ah... Yeah, I'm coming." Sasuke said, letting the insult slide as he got over his shock. He hated that he was acting less and less like himself lately, usually he would be indifferent about something as simple as that. Even if he was shocked he wouldn't freeze up or let it show on his outward appearance. Regardless, he followed quietly behind his new/old teammate as they made their way into the apartment building and up the five flights of stairs in silence.

Once they finally arrived in front of the door to Naruto's apartment, Sasuke watched the blonde unlock the door before he made his way inside. They both took off their shoes at the front door before heading into the the apartment. The raven soon realized the situation he was in and began to feel uncomfortable.

 _What was he going to say? He was nothing like Naruto when he was younger. The blonde had been loud and outgoing, even if everyone acted like he was a nuisance,_ _Naruto didn't care._

"Hungry?" Naruto suddenly asked and before Sasuke could say anything, his stomach answered for him with another loud grumble. He cursed that his metabolism was faster as a child.

"Tch, I'll take that as a yes." Naruto scoffed as he set down the bags he had been carrying on his kitchen counter top. The place was nice, spacious and had much more room than Sasuke's small apartment, but the raven could tell it was barely lived in.

"So... why did you agree?" Sasuke suddenly asked as he made himself comfortable at the table that was few meters away from the kitchen.

"You mean why did I agree to you're lame offer?" Naruto said as he started to take out the various vegetables from the paper bags. "I don't know. You tell me, why were you being followed?"

Sasuke paused for a second before he continued. "Followed? What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me dead last. Someone was obviously trailing you." The blonde said as he began to chop up an onion.

"I-I don't know what you mean..." Sasuke said almost in confusion. " There was someone following me? Why?"

"Tch, fine don't answer me." Naruto said suddenly and walked over one of the cupboards. He pulled out a container that held rice and started to scoop the cups into an empty pot. "So you're saying that you wanted to know more about me?"

"Yes, we should be best friends." Sasuke said with a smile. He was determined to play this stupid role, even if Naruto found him annoying. There was nothing more he wanted to do than act the way he usually would, but Sasuke wasn't about to blow his cover because he was too lazy to play the part. Itachi had played the role as villain for years, so why couldn't he act like a naive child that wanted nothing more than to be acknowledged by others? It wasn't only for the sake of the village but for all of the five nations. He wasn't planning on letting Tobi declare war on the five great nations this time around.

"Not a chance dead last." Naruto shot back as he started to fill the pot. "I don't need friends, much less a best friend."

"Fine, whatever." He said as he shifted in his seat as he snapped out of his earlier thoughts. _Why did Naruto have to be such a prick?_

"So what's you're favorite food?"

"Cut the small talk Sasuke, why is it you really wanted to talk to me?" Naruto snapped once again.

"I wanted to know more about you, is that so hard to believe?" He said. _Why was he so damn mad anyway?_ From the look of things Naruto was well respected by his classmates and teachers. He was acknowledged in this timeline, accepted as a part of the village. _So why did he act like his life was so hard?_

"Yes it is. Everyone knows everything about me." Naruto said before he stopped what he was doing and turned towards the Uchiha. "And more importantly what about you Uchiha? Let's talk about you for a bit, since you want to be friends and all."

Sasuke suddenly paused. He didn't know what to say. _Why was Naruto willing to let him in his apartment so easily, did he suspect something?_

"I..." He started before stopping. "I'm finally a Genin..." He begun. "I wanna become the strongest, most coolest ninja ever where everyone thinks I'm super cool."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "That it?"

"Oh, and Sakura-chan wants to be my girlfriend and everyone wants to hangout with me and I have so many friends that I don't have enough time to hang out with all of them." Sasuke finished. He scowled inwardly after his little speech. He had thrown away his pride to fit Naruto's personality. He reminded himself that it was a mere role. Once he got used to everything, his personality could slowly begin to chance into something he was more comfortable with.

"Hn." Naruto said before he turned back to cooking. Not long after Naruto was almost done dinner before Sasuke spoke up again.

"Did you need any help?"

"No, you'd probably screw something up."

Sasuke didn't say anything until he watched Naruto start set the table. "Thanks."

"Hn."

 _Was that all the boy could say?_

Before long they were sitting across from each other eating silently. When they were finally finished the blonde spoke.

"If you wanna know about me, too bad." He said before he got up from his seat. "You're not going to find out anything. And if you we're wondering why I let you in, it was to get rid of that pesky ANBU outside."

"Wait..." Sasuke said wondering why the blonde knew it was an ANBU. "How do you know it was an ANBU?"

"Hmm, from the looks of things you knew as well." Naruto said dismissively.

"I-It's always been like that. People follow me around all the time." Sasuke said his eyes down casted. "They keep their eyes on me. Because I'm the last Uchiha."

"Hn, you're not."

"What?"

"Nothing. Get out. We have to meet Kakashi tomorrow." He said and gestured towards the door. Sasuke didn't bother to say anything as he got up to head to the entrance.

"Oh, and don't say anything about this to Kakashi or Sakura." Naruto warned.

"Why?"

"Because, I don't view you as a friend. And don't tell me you don't think the same way."

"Teme, shut up. No wonder you have no friends, you're so damn mean." He said getting angry as he pointed an accusing finger towards Naruto.

"What's your excuse?" The blonde shot back.

"I have friends." Sasuke said defensively.

"Imaginary ones don't count."

"Shut up."

"Whatever." Naruto said as he closed the door on Sasuke. The raven yelled once before he left.

"Fine, just you wait for tomorrow! I'll show you just how strong I am."

With that Sasuke made his way back down towards the entrance. He was still surprised by the encounter but he had gotten a few answers he had been asking himself.

It was obvious the blonde was hiding something and from the way he acted towards him it was clear it had something to do with him. The dobe wanted to find out some information about him, by asking questions.

They had been both using each other for something when Sasuke had extended the offer to hangout.

"What are you up to dobe?" Sasuke asked out loud before he exited the building.

* * *

"Tch, nothing." Naruto scoffed as he leaned on the counter top.

He didn't get any information whatsoever from the raven idiot and realized he should've expected it. But what he did find interesting was the fact the boy seemed to be forcing some of his answers when Naruto had asked him questions.

"What are you hiding dobe?" Naruto asked out loud and wondered if the boy had always been like this. He had never paid much attention to him in there academy day, assuming he was only a child and knew nothing, even so he always did want to ask him questions.

About his family, and more importantly about a specific Uchiha.

Clutching his fist Naruto pushed the though aside as he started to clear the dishes.


	5. Chapter 5

Sasuke was awoken by the loud ringing of his alarm clock. He groaned a bit as he rose from his slumber and swung his legs to dangle over the side of his bed. Rubbing his eyes the raven slammed his hand down to turn off the instantaneous ringing of the clock. From what he could tell it was around dawn and the sun was making its first appearance in the sky.

He cursed Kakashi for making the meeting so early in the morning. He knew the man would show up late anyway and contemplated if sleeping in and going later would be better, but knew it would raise suspicion from his teammates.

Slowly getting out of bed, Sasuke made his way to the kitchen and started to fill the kettle with water. Once he placed the pot on the stove he made his way to the washroom where he started his daily routine. It didn't take very long, washing his face to wake himself up, and taking a quick shower before he got dressed for the day. Mid-way through changing he heard the kettle go off and made his way back to the kitchen. Taking it off the stove he placed it down onto another burner that wasn't lit.

The wake up routine hauntingly reminded him of his past and Sasuke wondered if things would always stay this way. Would he truly be able to prevent the destruction of both his team and village? Will he be able to stop the impending threat of invasion from Orochimaru? Will he stay and build his bonds with the team? Or will something else happen and change the circumstances. He was Naruto, meaning Naruto was the one that had to make all of those decision. For whatever reason Naruto had hatred built up inside of him and Sasuke knew with the right offer the boy might very well leave the village like he had. In order to fulfill a goal that would be meaningless in the end.

If Naruto chose that path, there would be no where for him to return to. Sasuke knew that all too well.

Sighing Sasuke decided that he needed to do something about all the problems he knew they would be facing soon. If he was able to build a strong bond with his team, maybe things would end up differently. The problem was Naruto was didn't seem too friendly last night. Although he had been invited into the boys apartment he could tell it was because the blonde wanted something from him. It was obvious that Naruto had some sort of alternate motive, but Sasuke wasn't sure what it was.

Grabbing a cup from one of the cupboards Sasuke pulled out a teabag inside and filled it with the steaming water. Walking back to his dresser he finished getting ready before he made his way back into the kitchen. As he sipped on the tea he had made, Sasuke glanced over to the clock on his nightstand and realized that he probably shouldn't be late on his first day.

* * *

Kakashi stood in the Hokage's office waiting for the third to look up from the report he was reading. He had suddenly been called out to meet the man just before he was had gone to bed. Apparently it was an urgent matter from the looks of things, considering one of the Hokage's personal ANBU had come to inform him.

"Hokage-sama, what do I owe the pleasure of visiting you so late?" Kakashi said in his usual carefree attitude.

"Kakashi, the matter I will be discussing is concerning your current team. And it's not a matter to be taken lightly." The man said in a stern voice.

"Oh, and what might that be?" He said his voice changing slightly.

"We have reason to believe that Sasuke Uchiha knows something about the incident five years ago." He began as he shuffled through the report he had received from one of the ANBU that had been surveying the abandoned Uchiha compound. "He was seen nearby the Uchiha compound tonight."

Kakashi was silent for a moment before he spoke. "And that would raise suspicion? Isn't it normal that he would go visit the place every once in a while?"

"Sasuke hasn't been reported to go visit the place since the incident and even if he had that doesn't explain his reaction." Saratobi informed the Jonin.

"What do you mean?"

"He was reportedly shocked at the destruction of the compound. Like he couldn't fathom what he was seeing and it was almost like it was his first time seeing the destruction. Which we all know is not true. He was both informed and shown the aftermath of the Uchiha compound after the fire. Even if he was young the imagines must have been etched into his mind."

Again the room was filled with silence before Kakashi pushed his hands into his pocket and spoke. "Although you have a valid point, I still don't see the cause for suspicion. Sasuke has been watched over for the past five years by the ANBU and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Just because he was seen visiting the compound doesn't mean he knows what happened five years ago."

"I would conclude the same thing if it wasn't for what the happened during his visit."

Kakashi rose an eyebrow at the sudden change in demeanor. The Hokage seemed to be bothered by something.

"As he was surveying the remains of the compound he suddenly sensed the ANBU that had been on duty. It was obvious he knew he was being watched. Soon after he figured out this piece of information he jumped into the trees and headed back to the inner regions of the village. He looked like he was running away from the ANBU, almost like he had been scared. Although drawing such conclusions won't answer just why he was running, it does raise my suspicions."

"I still don-" Kakashi begun to say before he was cut off by the Third.

"He then proceeded to hide his chakra signature and walk through the streets. At this point the ANBU said it looked like he was purposely trying to get away from him. Whether or not Sasuke-kun knew he was still being followed doesn't matter, his behavior would be classified as out of the ordinary. You are aware that over the years since the incident the boy would be considered friendly and carefree in what he did, he never hid things, even if others treated him badly." The Hokage stated as his face turned into one of guilt, but it was quickly replaced by a serious one as he looked towards the white-haired Jonin. "Seeing him suddenly running away from a ANBU makes me wonder if he's hiding something."

"Don't you think you're being a little paranoid?" Kakashi inquired.

"No, Sasuke-kun suddenly being secretive makes me wonder. If he knows about what really happened five years ago."

"Maybe the kid is just tired of being so damn happy all the time. Or maybe he wants to be like Naruto." Kakashi said and smirked under his mask.

"Whatever it is I want you to keep an eye on him."

"Hai, hai"

"Oh, and I think you'll be happy to hear that Sasuke has made friends with his teammates." Saratobi said with a sly smile.

"With Sakura? Well that's a surprise." The white-haired man said raising an eyebrow.

"No, not Sakura. Naruto."

"Naruto?"

With a simple nod, Kakashi realized that the matter at hand might be more serious than he thought. Although he didn't know much about the last Uchiha he had been informed by his former Sensei's about his behavior at the Academy. He was told the boy was loud, rowdy, and disruptive. He was horrible when it came to test both written and physical. He wasn't liked among his peers and seemed to have taken a liking to Sakura Haruno, even if she rejected him. All in all the boy seemed to be like a typical loud mouthed brat, maybe he sounded a little over baring at times but that was to be expected. The boy was consistently shunned and ignored by the villagers. The only way he was noticed was when he acted loud or rowdy.

The Uchiha almost reminded him of a former teammate of his.

Pushing his thoughts aside Kakashi made up his mind. He would keep an eye on the raven tomorrow to see if the boy acted oddly.

* * *

Sasuke jumped through the trees as he made his way to the training grounds. He expected his team to be waiting for him there already, without Kakashi, of course. If there was one thing Sasuke realized it was that the white-haired Jonin was exactly the same as he had been in his time. And so it was to be expected that Kakashi would be late for the meeting.

He also noted that he hadn't eaten anything for breakfast, due to the mans warning. It wasn't because he was stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice, but if for some unfortunate reason he ended up getting tied to that log, he wouldn't want to draw suspicion. He could survive the morning without food and he hoped if his plan worked they all would be eating by lunch time. As a team.

Making quick work of getting to the training ground, Sasuke realized as he got to the clearing that there was only one person there. Sakura. As he jumped down from the branch and landed a few meters away from the girl he watched as she turned with a smile on her face before it disappeared altogether.

"Oh, it's you." She said as she glared at him. Sasuke mentally frowned as he watched her.

"Good Morning to you too, Sakura-chan." He said cheerfully, knowing this act was getting old.

"Hmph, you were almost late." She chided him and he wondered if she was trying to find every fault in him. He really didn't remember Sakura being this cold, then again he hadn't been Naruto.

"Ah, sorry. But where's Naruto?" He apologized to her before he looked around to see if the blonde was nearby. He hadn't sensed the blondes chakra signature when he arrived, but then again he hadn't been trying to.

"He'll be here. Kakashi-sensei isn't here yet." She defended the blonde but Sasuke caught the worried expression that crossed her face.

"You're just trying to make up excuses for him." Sasuke said accusingly.

"No, I'm not. Naruto-kun can show up anytime he wants for all I care." She shouted at him. "No one will care."

"What does that mean?"

"Did you forgot who he is all of a sudden, idiot?" She insulted him.

"Who he is?" He repeated the words and watched her continue to fume in front of him.

"How on earth did you pass the graduation exam?" She begun. " I can't believe the Hokage's son is on the same team as an idiot like you."

 _Hokage's son... Hokage's son?_ Sasuke let the words sink in before it dawned on him. _She can't mean-_

He begun, before he wiped his head around to look at the Hokage mountain. _It couldn't be-_

 _Naruto was the fourth Hokage's son?_ Sasuke drew the conclusion as he looked at the face of the fourth, he had already pushed the thought that any other Hokage could be the blonde's father.

 _Although it was just his face, Sasuke could see the resemblance. He should've realized it sooner._ He mentally chided himself as he missed the connection.

 _But wait, did that mean this was true in his own time?_

 _How come Naruto never mention anything about it? He had heard the fourth had died in the attack by the Kyuubi sixteen years ago, but that answer why_ _Naruto hadn't told him who his father had been or even why he didn't have his last name._

Namikaze was the fourths last name. Minato Namikaze.

 _Wasn't the it the fourth that sealed the Kyuubi? Did that mean he sealed it into his own son?_ Sasuke realized and suddenly felt an overwhelming of guilt rush over him.

"What's wrong with you?" He heard all of a sudden and turned back to see Sakura with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Ah, nothing." He said, ignoring her completely. He was done with playing nice with her. She didn't bother to show him any respect anyway. "Why don't you go back to talking about Naruto, which I don't see what is so special about him anyway, but it seems to interest you more than anything else?" He suggested, knowing the girl would be offended by the comment.

"I don't only want to talk about Naruto-kun. And don't talk about him like that." She defended herself before turning around, away from him. Sighing Sasuke sat down on the ground as he waited for the rest of his team. He figured he could take a short nap before Kakashi arrived. The man would be late anyways.

Just as Sasuke closed his eyes he begun to sense a few familiar chakra signatures and shot up from his spot on the ground. They weren't enemies, but they weren't particularly friends either. He knew that much as he got up from his spot and turned to see ruffling of some bushes. They were coming.

"Ah, the morning air refreshes my youthful glow." a man said as he burst through the bushes into the open area Sasuke and Sakura were standing in.

"Hai, Gai-sensei!" A boy dressed almost exactly the same as the man said.

"Oi, wait up. It's too early for this." Sasuke heard a girl yell and a few seconds later she stepped into the clearing. A few steps behind her was a long haired boy walking casually towards the group.

"What are you talking about, Tenten-san. These are the days of our lives. We need to bask in the mighty glow of our youthfulness." The boy said enthusiastically.

"That's the spirit, Lee!"

"Hai, Gai-sensei!"

Sasuke watched the scene play out and suppressed a groan. It looks like nothing has changed when it comes to this team either He observed them for a few seconds before they finally seemed to notice him and turned their attention towards Sakura and himself.

"Hello there." Gai said as he walked towards him. "What might you be doing here?"

"Ah- I'm waiting for my Sensei." He stated awkwardly.

"Oh! I forgot this years graduates are having their first meetings with their Sensei's today." He said before he leaned towards Sasuke and whispered to him. "Who might your Sensei be?"

"Kakashi-sensei." He said and watched the man suddenly jump back.

"Oh! Kakashi!" He said placing his hands on his hips. "Fate must be here with us today, as you may not know Kakashi is my life long rival!"

"O-okay." Sasuke responded, knowing that this would be the best way to get rid of the overly excited man.

"Sensei, you're scaring the boy." Tenten said suddenly before she went over to Sasuke and patted his head. He internally scowled, but kept the same indifferent expression on his face. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said coolly to her as she removed her hand and laughed a bit.

"Hey, look Neji. He reminds me of you." She teased the Hyuuga and Sasuke watched as the older boy frowned.

"Are you guys Chunin?" He asked curious, wondering if the team had already passed the exam. It would be useful information for later. Especially when the Chunin exams rolled around.

"No, we're not." Neji answered him and Sasuke smirked at the response.

"Well, I'm looking forward in seeing you in the exam this year." He said as he watched Neji's eyes narrow towards him.

"Don't take it so lightly." The Hyuuga began before he turned to walk away from the grounds. "You might not make it out alive."

"Hn." Sasuke responded before he looked back towards Tenten.

It looked like Gai and Lee were talking among themselves and hadn't paid much attention to the small challenge Sasuke had suggested.

"Hey, Neji where are you going?" Tenten yelled suddenly, running after him. "Oh wait, what's your name?"

"Sasuke"

"Mine's Tenten, nice to meet you Sasuke-kun." She said before running after her teammate.

"Well then, it looks like we have come to the wrong training grounds." Gai said out loud and Sasuke wondered if the man ever got tired. "It was nice to meet one of my mighty rivals students. I hope we see each other again." He said before he left, with Lee in tow.

As he watched the team walk off he turned back to see Sakura staring at him. He had forgotten she was still there.

"What was that about?" She asked him and he sighed before settling down on the ground once again.

"They're a team that graduated last year." He explained before he let his head rest on his arms.

"How do you even know them?" She asked like it was amazing he had been able to talk to the group.

"I don't."

"But you acted like you did. Like yo-" She begun to accuse him before she noticed someone jumping down from a nearby branch. "Ah! Naruto-kun"

Sasuke watched as the girl ran over to the blonde and suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. Naruto didn't bother to acknowledge Sakura and instead leaned on the tree he had jumped down from. Sasuke decided he still had some time before Kakashi came, so without another word to either of his teammates, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **Team Gai! I love them. They would be an interesting team to be in. I also think they we're one of the teams that didn't really care much about Naruto having the Kyuubi inside of him. I hope you guys like it. I know Sasuke is sort of forced to act like Naruto, but soon he will be showing of his true self. We see this when he talks to Sakura in this chapter.**

 **Please feel free to review and tell me what you thought and follow or favorite if you haven't already!**

 **Until next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello! Sorry for the late update, I was sick. Thank you so much for all of the follows and favorites! I also love reading about your opinion in reviews. I know that this story is progressing slowly but I hope you guys stick with me the whole way through. This chapter is longer than the others so please tell me if you like it or if you prefer something shorter. It may take a little longer to write them, but I'd love to know what you think!**

* * *

Kakashi stood in the large room taking in the surroundings. It was different.

He narrowed his eyes as he began to walk around the empty apartment, making sure he took in every change he could find. And there were many. It was almost like it was a completely different place altogether. Yes, there was still a bit of a mess here or there, but what struck Kakashi the most was the fact the apartment looked lived in.

He had been in the same apartment after Sasuke had passed his graduation exam less than a week ago, yet it looked and felt completely different. There had been clothes on the floor, wrappers and empty containers on the counter, magazines and books scattered across the small table in front of the couch and more noticeably no food except for a few packages of instant ramen and a few energy bars in the cupboards.

He couldn't explain it, but now the place was cleaner, the wrappers had been picked up, the magazines stacked neatly into a pile on the table and the fridge filled with a few vegetables. Despite being cleaner than it had probably ever been, the place felt like this space was begin used like it should be. It was hard to explain but Kakashi knew that although before Sasuke was surely using his apartment to live in, it felt like a completely different person was inhabiting it now. Like Sasuke Uchiha had moved out and someone else had moved in. But, he wasn't naïve enough to believe such a thing. He prided himself on keeping tabs on his up and coming genin, and he fully well knew that no one had been in or out of the other than his new student.

"Hmm, interesting." He said as he closed the fridge door and turned to walk over to the boy's bed. He settle himself down on the covers and turned to open the small drawer on the nightstand. As he did, he was met with a picture. Kakashi could tell it was old, from the way it looked, the corners curling inwards and the small wrinkles from being bent over time.

"His family..." He said as his mood changed to a serious one, once again. Any little sign that tied the Uchiha to his family, and to the fire five years ago raised suspicion for him. Kakashi was well aware that it was normal for the boy to have a keepsake to remember his family by but he wasn't about to let his guard down. He knew that if Sasuke somehow found out about the truth, it might change him completely. His happy personality could change into one of hate and the white-haired Jonin would do anything to prevent that from happening.

He didn't need, nor did he want, another student filled with hatred.

More importantly, if the secrets of that night got out, and became common knowledge, who knows what type of change that might cause throughout the village. If it somehow threw the village into chaos it might be problematic. Konoha was still one of the major villages throughout the ninja world, and if the enemy caught word of the village's internal turmoil's they might use that to their advantage.

As he put the picture back into the drawer Kakashi glanced up to the clock that was sitting on the nightstand and decided it was about time he should meet his new students. Although the trio was the most unusual group Genin's he had had as a team, it didn't excuse the fact that if they didn't pass the test he had in store for them, they would be sent back to the academy.

Closing the drawer and taking one last look at the apartment, Kakashi left and headed to his awaiting team.

* * *

Sasuke shifted his body into a seated position as he opened his eyes. He let his hands take the weight of his body as he leaned back, placing his palms onto the ground of the training area. Looking around he noticed his teammates were in similar positions, Sakura leaning against a tree, struggling to stay awake and Naruto against another one, hands crossed over his chest.

Unlike Sakura, he was wide awake and seemed to be deep in thought, so much so that he didn't notice the raven staring at him. That is until Sasuke shifted a bit and Naruto turned to glare at him.

"What are you looking at, dobe?" He said with a scowl.

"What? I thought we were friends now." Sasuke said in a dry tone. "It's not my fault that you're that dense that you didn't notice me staring."

"Friends? Were you deaf? Last night was for my sake, not yours. ANBU are a nuisance." Naruto said back coldly, then he turned to look over at Sakura, from the looks of things he was checking if the girl was listening before he continued. "And I'm not the one that's the dead last of the class."

"I passed didn't I?" Sasuke said as he noticed the blonde was getting more irritated by the conversation. Maybe if he got the boy riled up he would finally show some emotion. He wanted some information after all, and Sasuke knew that it was easy to get it out of someone's anger.

"So, why do you live alone?" Sasuke asked, the question sounding innocent, yet it did the trick.

He watched as the boy paused for a second before he answered in a low tone. "Is that any of your business?"

"No, but we're friends. I live alone too." He knew that wasn't much of a reasoning to ask such a personal question but he knew the boy would brush it off as him being an idiot for asking.

"Shut up." He said in an almost dismissive manner, but Sasuke wasn't about to let this go.

"We're the same. We don't have anyone." He said in a hush tone. He had heard Naruto say something similar to this before back in their academy days, yet back then he had rejected the boy harshly.

' _How could you understand anything about me?! You've been on your own since the beginning. What makes you think you know anything about me?'_

"The same? Are you blind? Does anyone care about you? Would they care if you died? If you suddenly disappeared?" Naruto said suddenly before he got up from his spot and started to walk towards him. "No one could care less, about you. We're the _same_ , what a joke."

"Harsh words for someone that's in the same situation." Sasuke said as he got up and brushed himself off. "Naruto, don't fool yourself into thinking that anyone cares about you. You're the Hokage's son, they respect you, that's all."

He watched as the blonde visibly stiffened in front of him before he walked closer to grab his collar.

"What's gotten into you, dobe?" He said in an almost cynical voice. He had never seen this side of Naruto before. "Did you suddenly forget your place?"

He had confirmed his new-found discovery of Naruto being the fourth's son, but it didn't matter now. It wouldn't do him any good in getting out of this situation.

Sasuke shifted a bit but knew he needed to get out of this confrontation. Naruto looked irritated and ready to punch him. He couldn't blame him though, it annoyed Sasuke when someone told him they _understood._

 _They had no idea what he had to go through, what he had to endure every day. They would feel bad for him but the shock of the incident would die away and they would soon forget. Like the events never happened. It sicken him how people were willing to continue on with their daily lives pretending everything was alright. Because for Sasuke it hadn't been. The scars from that night still stayed with him to this day._

"You know nothing." Naruto hissed at him.

Sasuke stayed silent for a moment before he lifted his hand to pull Naruto's hand off.

"You're right." Sasuke said in a distant tone. "I know nothing about what you're so damn mad about. But what I do know is you're too naive."

"Don't try to act all high and mighty, you-"

"I'm not going to stand here and pretend I know everything about you. But if you're going to be an idiot and think that you'll get revenge for something that is pointless then maybe you shouldn't be a Ninja."

The hit was fast yet Sasuke had expected it, he luckily had been able to shift his head to the right to dodge the blow and instead was hit in the shoulder. Stumbling back a few steps Sasuke looked up to see the livid blonde.

"Pointless?! I'd assume you though your family dying had been pointless as well." He said in cold tone.

"Shut up." Sasuke said back as he looked down. He already knew they were gone in this time as well, he didn't need to be reminded.

"The Uchiha fire was nothing to you was it?! If someone had killed them all instead you wouldn't have cared at all, right?" Naruto continued, not realizing how the raven clenched his fist.

 _The Uchiha fire? So that's how they died._ Sasuke faintly acknowledged, before a wave of anger shot through him as he heard the blonde's last sentence. How ironic.

"Shut up, say another word and you'll regret it."

"Oh, and what were you planning to do, Sasuke-kun?" A voice suddenly said and the two boys turned to see a familiar silver-haired Jonin perched on a tree branch. The same tree that Sakura was leaning against still, soundlessly sleeping.

"Well, boys. It looks like you're getting off on the right foot." Kakashi said as he smiled under his mask.

Sasuke was not amused at the teasing and by the looks of things Naruto wasn't either.

"You're late." They said at the same time before they turned to glare at each other.

"I got lost on the pat-" Kakashi began to say before Sasuke cut him off.

"Save it, Kakashi." Sasuke said before he realized he was being too familiar. "...sensei, you were late the first day too."

"Well..." the man said before he jumped down onto the ground to land on his two feet. The boys watched as Sakura was awoken by the loud landing and Sasuke could tell the man had done that on purpose. "Shall we get started?"

* * *

The tree Genin stood in front of him and Kakashi wondered if he hadn't scared them enough; from the looks of things the boys seemed to be bored, almost like they were confident that they would pass Kakashi's little test. As for Sakura, well, she had been sleeping when he arrived, which made the Jonin wonder why she was here if she wasn't going to take things seriously.

"I wonder where we should start..." Kakashi said out loud and watched as the Genin shifted a little where they stood. They could tell he was annoyed from the cold tone he used. Paying no mind to the way the three genin's discomfort, Kakashi headed over to a stump that had a clock placed on top of it.

"Alarm set at 12 PM." He said as he placed a hand down on the clock. "Today we are going to do a challenge of sorts. All you need to do is get one of these two bells from me." He said as he held up two bells hanging on a string.

"Whoever can't will have no lunch."

"What?" He heard them say, but continued anyways. "I'm going tie you there..." He said and pointed to three stumps one of which had the clock on it. "And eat lunch in front of you."

In slight amusement Kakashi watched the three scowl as they came to the realization of why they couldn't eat breakfast. The boys glared at him while Sakura just groaned before she looked at him in confusion.

"Wait, but Sensei they're only two bells." Kakashi wondered if the two other boys had already noticed this and didn't say anything from the way they awaited his response. Regardless, the question from the girl brought back fond memories of his own bell test. Rin had asked the same question to Minato-sensei.

"Since there are only two, at least one of you will be tied to the stump." He said back with a slightly sadistic smile. "That person will fail since they did not complete the challenge and will return to the academy. It might be one, or all three of you..."

Kakashi watched as the Genin in front of him change their demeanor as they waited for him to continue. "You can use your shuriken, you won't be able to get this unless you have the will to kill me."

Silence followed before Sakura built up the nerve to protest. "But that's too dangerous, Sensei."

"There's no need to complain if you are confident in your abilities, Sakura." Sasuke spoke up and Kakashi was slightly taken back at the confidence in his voice. "Besides he fell for the little prank we played on him yesterday, didn't you Sensei?" The boy said in an almost teasing voice and Kakashi wasn't sure if the boy was doing it to just piss him off or if he was so sure that he would be able to pass that he was willing to tease him.

"Those who don't have many abilities tend to complain more. Just ignore the guy with the lowest scores." He stated and watched the boy tense up before he scowled. Without blinking Kakashi moved on with his explanation.

"We're going to start after I say, 'Ready, set'."

Kakashi watched as the three Genin shifted their bodies until they were in a fighting stance. The Jonin took a moment to look over the three until he paused at the raven. The first two Genin seemed to have some sort of stance that resembled the ones that were taught in the academy. Sakura's was decent for a Genin fresh out of the academy. He could see the pinkette had the basic form down, her hands out in front of her protecting her upper body and her legs parted at a good distance, but he also noticed some holes in the form. If someone decided to attack her head on suddenly he could tell the form wouldn't hold up. Her reaction time would be slower because of her stance, it was too wide. She needed to bring her arms in more, her shoulders into her body so that she covered less space. All in all the girl had a lot of potential.

He shifted his sights towards Naruto and noticed how the blonde's stance was almost perfect. The stance from the academy was shown perfectly from the way he placed his hands and legs to the way he held the Kunai in his hands. From the looks of things Kakashi could tell the boy practice the stance often. Despite the blonde being hailed as a genius, Kakashi noticed that Naruto was no means someone that had natural talent. He trained his body every day until the stances and techniques were burned into his memories. Regardless of how much the boy trained though, the Jonin could see the stance wasn't perfect. His shoulders were too straight which caused his spine to arc inward. Kakashi could tell that this stance would be troublesome if someone were to suddenly attack him from behind. He would react slower even if it were by a mere few seconds. A mere second was all it took to end the life of a ninja.

As for the last Genin, Kakashi looked at the boy curiously. The stance he was using was completely different from any of the academy stances. He knew it wasn't one that was commonly taught to Genin. Even if it were, it wouldn't be in the way the boy was using it. Sasuke was standing with his legs separated from each other, one of his forearms were extended out in front of him in a defensive manner while he had his other hand by his waist, near his weapons pouch. It was odd, the stance was a viable defense but it also presented many gaps, when it came to Genin using it. If it were a Jonin, the ninja could easily sustain the stance as he fought an enemy, it would be quite useful actually. If a Genin used this stance however, they wouldn't be able to keep up with an oncoming assault. They would be overwhelmed by the attack and be forced to use both arms to defend themselves.

Aside from the complexity of the stance, Kakashi noticed that Sasuke was also leaning forward slightly, slouching too much. It looked odd and the Jonin wondered if the boy usually stood this way. As he questioned this, he watched the boy begin to shift until his stance resembled the other two genin.

 _Why did he change it all of a sudden?_ Kakashi questioned before he continued to look over the three. _What was the point of going into that stance? Did he want him to know he was educated in a fighting stance like that? No, it would only draw more questions towards himself and from the reports from the Hokage last night, Sasuke was trying to lay low._

After a minute of observing the three he decided he should get the test started. It didn't matter what stance they used, if they didn't use their minds to complete this challenge they would all fail. Fighting was one thing, but being about to figure out a way to get past obstacles like this one was what shinobi had to do when they were put into unexpected situations.

 _You could train your body to get stronger but if you didn't train your mind, it would ultimately lead to the death of both you and your teammates._ Kakashi thought as he grimly recalled his former team as a Genin.

Snapping the thoughts out of his mind Kakashi shook the bell in his hands before he finally spoke.

"Ready...set"

"Go."

* * *

Kakashi noted how the three genin disappeared into the trees as soon as he said his last words. It was quite amusing how the three of them were taking this challenge so seriously. He was actually expecting someone to come charging at him right off the bat, claiming that they could take him. That, or the three of them going up against each other and taking each other out before trying to snatch the bells. From all the years he had been doing this test, Kakashi had to admit this was the first time the genin didn't mindlessly act, instead they hid themselves as they decided their next moves.

Smart, he'd give them that. But would they figure out the true meaning of this test? That was the real question.

Sasuke shifted on the branch he was perched on. He could sense Sakura on a tree to his right and Naruto to his left. He was glad that his sensory skills were still up to par to what they had been as a teen. It gave him an advantage that was now holding useful. The only problem was if Kakashi wanted to suddenly pop up behind him, he knew he wouldn't be able to evade in time, even if he could sense it. His physical abilities were severely limited, and although when he was a child he probably thought his skill level was beyond all of his teammates, he now knew he had been overestimating himself. Despite Sasuke graduating the academy at the top of his class, he knew there were many stronger ninja out there that could easily take a genin such as him.

He slightly recalled how easily Itachi had subdued his attack and had nearly killed him when they had met for the first time in years. His brother had effortless slammed him into that wall, whispering in his ear that he was a far ways away when it came to skill level. Sasuke had been an idiot to think he could take Itachi back then, even as a teenager Sasuke had struggled to defeat his brother in their final battle.

"You should focus on the task at hand." He heard a familiar voice say behind him and Sasuke instinctively turned around throwing a few shuriken in the direction of the voice before jumping off the tree to land onto the training grounds below. He started to make a few seals with his hands before stopping himself, letting his arms drop to his sides as he looked up at his smiling Jonin sensei. He had almost activated a technique he knew would draw attention. It was trained into him and he slightly wanted to hit himself at how stupid he was to be distracted in the first place. Damn, he only wished Kakashi didn't notice those seals had been for a chidori.

"Hm, good instincts, but what were those seals you were just doing?" He asked curious at what the young Uchiha had been planning to do.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Sensei." Sasuke said dismissively as he looked up at the older man. Kakashi jumped down from the branch he was standing on, falling in front of the raven. Sasuke made sure to take a few steps backwards, making sure he kept his distance. He wasn't about to underestimate Kakashi.

"I would…" The silver haired man said with a small smile but what was more striking was the dark glint in the man's eyes. Damn, Kakashi was onto him.

The man suddenly appeared behind Sasuke as soon as he finished saying those two simple words. Luckily this time the raven had been expecting it and quickly dodged the punch that was aimed at his face. He took the opportunity to step to the side and launch a kick with his left leg, aiming for the man's stomach. Unfortunately his leg was easily caught and twisted to the side enough for Sasuke to feel sufficient pain. He suppressed the urge to scream out in pain, instead he tried to regain his balance with Kakashi holding onto his leg. Sadly, the man took this to his advantage and swept one of his feet underneath Sasuke's right leg, ultimately causing the raven to onto the ground. The young Uchiha immediately felt one of his arms pulled behind his back, being pushed up harshly into his back. He was trapped.

Kakashi had easily taken him down, with little to no effort. The man hadn't even used weapons or any Jutsu's. Fuck. He wanted to blame it on the fact that he was very limited in what he could or couldn't do, but Sasuke knew it purely on his lack of skill. He was weak now, something he wasn't used to. Even as a child he knew he was above level when it came to his age level, but that was then and sadly this was something completely different. The body he was trapped in now, wasn't the same one he had as a child. He didn't train endlessly every day to perfect his skills in hopes of one day taking down Itachi. He didn't have the hatred he had as a child. He wasn't the same person he was when graduated from the academy the first time.

He faintly noted that Kakashi had taken the liberty to check his weapons pouch, probably making sure he didn't have anything he wasn't supposed to have. Seconds later he could hear a low whisper in his right ear and it took Sasuke a few seconds to respond to the accusation.

"I know there's something off about you, Sasuke-kun." Kakashi started, saying his name in an almost mocking manner.

"What do you mean, Sensei?" Sasuke asked innocently. Despite the man thinking Sasuke had something he was hiding, it didn't necessarily mean he did. He would pretend he knew nothing until the very end if he had to.

"What do you know?" Kakashi demanded.

"I-I know nothing…" Sasuke struggled against the grip that was holding him down.

"Pretending you know nothing will only make things harder, boy." The warning was clear and the raven frowned as he realized he needed to tell the man something. His thoughts flashed back to the Uchiha compound, the charred buildings, the destroyed houses, and most importantly the sickening realization that his family was no long alive.

"I'm not some idiot that would fall for such a blatant lie."

It was a mere guess, but the name slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

"Itachi…" He said before he felt the body on top of him stiffen for a few seconds before he started to say something, only to be cut off by a kunai being thrown his direction. The man easily dodged it, but him to loosen his grip enough that Sasuke was able to escape. He was panting loudly as he distanced himself from the silver haired man.

He looked over to where the kunai had been thrown, noting that Naruto was now standing on the training grounds, his face in a scowl.

"Sensei, you should pay more attention to your surroundings." He said as he begun to walk towards the man slowly.

"I don't need to worry." He said, a smirk on his face now. "I'm only up against a mere Genin after all."

"Don't underestimate me, old man." Naruto said as he charged forward. Sasuke watched as Kakashi's eyebrow twitched in irritation before he easily stopped the boy's punch and jumped backwards to distancing himself once again. Sasuke observed the two of them to fight for awhile before he tried to spot an opening. This was the perfect opportunity to work together with Naruto and hopefully get one of the bells. As long as he showed the man they could work together he was sure they would pass. Just as he saw Naruto getting pushed back by a kick Sasuke jumped in and begun his assault of attacks.

"Out of the way dobe." He heard the blonde yell as they both tried to attack Kakashi. However Sasuke had to be careful he didn't get hit by Naruto's kicks and punches. The blonde didn't seem to care whether they were hitting there intended target.

"We can work together and get this over with faster." He told the younger boy before he noticed Kakashi smile a bit before he grabbed one of Naruto's arms effectively stopping the punch the blonde had thrown. Sasuke frowned as he watched man twisted the arm behind Naruto's back, and put a kunai up against the others neck, subduing his students movements altogether.

"Now, Sasuke-kun, you seem so keen on teamwork." Kakashi said with a devilish smile. "What are you going to do about this?" He asked as he dragged the sharp blade against Narutos neck, drawing a small amount of blood. Sasuke wasn't worried that the man would harm the blonde, but then again he was only basing that off of the fact that his Kakashi would never do that. For all he knew, this one could be willing to harm his students to get information out of them. He knew the man was still curious about what he had said earlier, but Sasuke wouldn't budge. Or more importantly he had nothing to tell the man that wouldn't result in his whole cover being blown. If only he knew why Itachi's name held so much significance. Hadn't he just died like the others? Had he somehow survived and if so why did it matter?

Sasuke had a sicken hunch that the events in this time period were probably similar to the ones in his own time. Itachi must have had a mission like the first time. But why did the villagers regard the Uchiha clan as bad people then? Did the third not go through with his promise? Or was there more to the matter? There were so many question and no answers in sight. There was no way he would be able to answer Kakashi honestly. So he lied the best he could. Made himself sound like an innocent child that had stumbled upon something he shouldn't have. Like he had some idea what was going on but didn't know the whole story, which was exactly the situation he was in now.

"Let go of him." Sasuke demanded, getting into a fighting stance, this time remember one from the academy.

"Your teammate's in danger, what will you do?" Kakashi asked as he ignored Naruto struggling under his grip. "Would you risk your life for him? Or run away?"

"I'd risk my life without a seconds hesitation." Sasuke said, confidence in his voice. He stood up straight and begun to walk forward. "You can take me instead if it meant that my teammate would live." He said, his resolve unwavering.

"I don't need your damn help." Naruto yelled as he tried to twist his way out of Kakashi's grip to no avail.

"You hear that? He probably wouldn't do the same for you." The silver haired Jonin said, as if to convince Sasuke that this wasn't work his life. That Naruto wasn't worth saving. Maybe if he was still as naive as before he would've believed something like that, but not now. Naruto had never given up on him, so why would he?

He still felt odd thinking back to his first friend. He hadn't seen the boy since the encounter on that bridge after his fight with Danzo, yet he noticed how the blonde had grown. Naruto had become strong, he wasn't the loudmouthed brat anymore. He was a well respected ninja who had gone through many hardship yet still fought for the bond they had made many years ago. He still saw Sasuke as some worth fighting for, which was saying something since many had given up on him since he had left the village.

"Does it matter? Naruto and I are teammates. I would do everything in my power to save him if he was captured." Sasuke said, not buying the act Kakashi was putting on. Kakashi probably knew more than anyone else how it felt to leave a teammate behind. He wasn't too sure what events the man had experienced as a child, but he guessed it had something to do with his own Genin team. He had never met Kakashi's team and the man had never mentioned them. He vaguely remembered the conversation he had had with the silver haired man when he had tied Sasuke to a tree in attempt to stop him from leaving.

 _"What if I were to kill the one you love the most?! How far would you stray from what you just said? I can make you feel true pain!" Sasuke yelled in disgust._

 _"That would work, however... unfortunately, for me no such person exists."_

 _There was a pause before Kakashi explained. "Those people have already... been killed."_

"Oh, and tell me why would you do such a thing?" Kakashi asked, curious as to the reasoning behind the boys opinion.

"Because those who abandon their teammates are-" Sasuke begun to say before he stopped himself. He caught himself at the last moment as he realized that line was something Kakashi had once told them. The raven instead took the opportunity to disappear from the mans sight, only to reappear behind him, with a Kunei in hand.

He aimed for the bells, hoping it would throw Kakashi off enough to let him loosen his grip on Naruto. He took that moment to end his earlier sentence, making sure the silver-haired man heard him clearly. "Unworthy of calling themselves a Ninja."

Luckily for him Naruto was able to escape the mans hold in that moment and the two of them jumped back to create distance between themselves and their Sensei.

"Oi, Sasuke." Naruto said, and the raven narrowed his eyes slightly at the use of his name. "Get Sakura."

The Uchiha paused for a few moments before he processed the words. He suppressed a scowl as he heard the demand. What was Naruto playing at?

"Wh-"

"Just get her! If you want to pass this challenge, get her and bring her here." He yelled as they never moved their gaze away from Kakashi. Sasuke didn't say a word as he disappeared from the training ground and landed on a nearby tree. Naruto was obviously thinking of a way to pass this challenge, and although he knew how they could pass, he wasn't about to tell the others that. He had done too much already. No doubt he would be questioned after this and he'd probably be forced to go talk to the Hokage so they could get some information out of them.

He screwed up. And so damn soon. He shuffled through his thoughts to see what he could do to explain why exactly he knew those seals he had used earlier. They weren't very complicated really... but he had done them on instinct. He didn't need to look down, nor did he hesitate when he preformed them. Sasuke was well aware that Kakashi was highly suspicions at this point, and although it wasn't blatantly obvious he had been performing a chidori, the man still knew he had been intending to use a high level nin-jutsu.

How would he explain that?

He couldn't say it was a fire style technique, because of the order of the seals he had used. Nor could he say that he learned it from someone because there was no one that would vouch for him. He slight wondered if he could say he had learned it from someone he had once met, but on second thought he wasn't about to make up some person for the sake of covering up this mistake, because if the village somehow found out that he had been lying it would cause him more trouble.

As for saying Itachi's name earlier, he wasn't very sure how to explain why he had. Maybe it was because he feared his older brother was subjected to a similar situation in this time period. He wished he hadn't seen that shocked face of Kakashi's as he utter Itachi's name. His brother must be alive. He must have been a part of that fire. He had to be. It was bittersweet as he thought of the deal his brother made this time. Was it any different from before?

He snapped out of his thoughts as he focused on the task at hand.

"Sakura." He said as he landed on the same branch the pink haired girl was hiding on.

"What do you want?" She snapped as she got up from her spot.

"I need you to come with me." He said as he gestured towards the opening in the trees, where the training ground was located.

"Come with you?" She asked. "I'm not going to fall for something like that, Sasuke. I know if I do you'd probably try to attack me or something. You just want the bells for yourself."

Sasuke didn't say anything as he observed the girl. She was smart enough to at least think of that. But she was sadly mistaken. "I guess I'll just tell Naruto you didn't want to come then." He said as he turned to leave.

He didn't need to turn back to know what she would say next. "W-wait, Naruto-kun wanted me to come?"

"Yes." He said dismissively before he jumped off the tree and onto the grounds below, walking back towards the grounds. He could sense the girl was following him. Sasuke slightly wondered if the blonde hadn't gone to get her himself because it was much easier if she came to him. Now that Sasuke thought about it the girl would run to Naruto as soon as she heard he wanted her beside him. Sakura was a strong girl, but he noted that right now she was still a naive girl that didn't take becoming a ninja as something serious.

He shifted his gaze back onto the retreating figures. Naruto and Kakashi were fighting, but it was obvious the older of the two wasn't trying. Sasuke guessed it was probably because the man was curious about what Naruto's plans were. As the remaining two members of team seven walking towards the grounds, Naruto back up.

"So, the plan?" Sasuke asked. "Tell us what you have in mind?"

"Sasuke, don't order Naruto around like that?"

Naruto ignored the girls protests and instead answered Sasuke's question.

"We need to work together." Naruto finally said, and Sasuke hid his smirk.


	7. Chapter 7

It didn't come as a huge surprise when Naruto uttered those words. If Naruto had seen the way Kakashi had questioned Sasuke earlier, then he would've surely noticed the series of questions that made the raven choose between either saving his teammate or capturing the bells. From a simple deduction, the blonde probably realized the reason as to why their teacher was doing this.

It wasn't to see whether Sasuke should choose the bells or Naruto, because Kakashi knew the answer already. A ninja should always put their own lives before their teammates and certainly before the mission. In this case, Kakashi probably believed if three kids put their own ambitions in front of the safety of their teammates they had no right being genin and if they were willing to take down their teammates to achieve their own goal, they definitely shouldn't be shinobi.

"Naruto-kun, what would you like me to do?" Sakura asked, as she brushed her shoulder against the blonde's. Sasuke could tell the pink haired girl was a little too close for comfort from the look on Naruto's face, but despite this he merely just ignored her and turned his attention to the raven.

"Oi, dead last." Naruto whispered. "You need to distract Kakashi long enough for us to get the bell."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he looked at the blonde. Naruto was up to something. "What do you mean distract?"

"As in, be the decoy. Do something that would get his attention." Naruto said before he added. "You used to be pretty damn loud back in the academy, shouldn't be very hard for you."

The comment was an offhanded insult, but Sasuke brushed it off. Instead he smiled and acted exactly the same way the idiot would've back in their academy days. "You bet, got it covered, teme. You'd be a horrible distraction anyways."

"Sakura, your job is to cover me. Once I get close enough, I'll grab the bells, but if Kakashi notices before then, be ready to jump out and attack."

"Why can't I attack!?" Sasuke voice, a little too loud than necessary, which was quiet amusing since his two teammates glared at him before Sakura punched his head. He needed to stay in character, but he wondered if the Naruto he knew had ever gotten tired of being so damn happy all the time. Then again, he guessed the other way to go was to hate everything and he could never see the dobe being like that.

"You barely could pass the graduation exam, that's why you can't attack."

"You think Kakashi would agree. After what happened earlier?" Sasuke shot back, knowing the blonde had no excuses as to how Sasuke had been able to hold his own against their teacher. It's not like he wanted to draw attention towards his skills, but the raven did want the other to acknowledge him enough to show Sasuke a bit of respect.

"Hm, dumb luck." Naruto sneered before he turned his attention back to their teacher who was still casually reading. He missed the frown on his teammate's face, but Sasuke let it pass with the moment and turned his attention back to the silver-haired man.

 _He's probably heard everything we've said already._ Sasuke thought, however he didn't bother to voice his opinions because the raven didn't have another plan to offer either way.

"Let's get on with the plan then."

* * *

Kakashi stood patiently waiting. He'd been contemplating what to do from the very moment Sasuke had whispered _that_ name. He couldn't call the challenge off because it would be too much work to redo it later. Yes, he was fully aware of what one of his students had revealed to him earlier, but at this point it could have just been a hunch.

"Come out Sasuke, I know you're hiding." He announced before looking up from the book. He let his eyes wonder around the training ground, looking to see where the raven had hidden himself. It was easy to spot the three of them hiding themselves in the trees, and even if he couldn't, he still could hear them.

As if on cue, the raven jumped out from his spot in the tree. His smile was wide as he held a kunei in front of his chest. "As you wish, Sensei. Wouldn't want to disappoint you." He teased.

 _Stay in character._ He reminded himself.

"If that's the case, why don't we continue our little conversation?" Kakashi propositioned before he took a step closer.

"Sure." Was all the boy said before he begun to play with the weapon in his hand. Spinning it in his hands before he asked. "Give me one of those bells and I'll tell you everything you need."

 _He knew this wasn't what the blonde had meant when he said to keep him distracted, but it's not like Naruto could stop him now._

"Oh? I'd gladly give you one of these." The said as he waved the bells around. "But, you see the thing is, I've been in ANBU before and I know how to negotiate."

Sasuke begun to frown before he heard the man continue. "Why don't you tell me something interesting before I hand it over?"

"Like what?" He asked, trying his best not to clench his jaw. He was getting backed into a corner and all he could do was stall. He had no answers, he had no explanations and he certainly had no memories about what happened in _this_ past. If Kakashi asked anything that should be obvious to Sasuke Uchiha in this timeline, he wouldn't be able to answer.

"Let's start off easy. Sasuke-kun, why were you spotted in the Uchiha compound last night?" The question was loud enough for everyone on the training ground to here and immediately Sasuke glared at the man.

He'd worry about Naruto later. Kakashi was his problem now. "Can I not see the place I used to _live_ in?"

"I'd assume that it was the last place you'd like to go, considering _everyone_ in your family died during that fire."

"…"

"Your cousins, aunts, uncles… parents." Kakashi begun to list off as he watched the boy closely. "Your brother. They _all_ died."

Surprisingly, the boy didn't react to the bait, instead he glared. "That's cruel, Sensei. I already know, but it's somewhere to remember them. To remember all the memories I had with them."

Kakashi didn't bother to pry any further on that matter, instead he turned his focus to something else.

"Pray tell, why did you say your brother's name then?" He asked, knowing the other wasn't expecting the up front question. If he was an ANBU he'd have to seclude Sasuke before he could ask questions such as this and even then he'd make sure he was close enough to see if the raven was showing any signs of lying. However, he wasn't currently an ANBU, and in all honestly he wasn't interested in whether Sasuke was going to lie or tell the truth, he just wanted an answer.

Of course if the boy revealed something that should better be kept a secret, well, he'd stop Sasuke then and there and drag him in for integration. Kakashi's reasoning might not be the best, but there was no one there that could tell him otherwise and he'd much rather play with his prey before he went in for the kill, so to speak.

He waited for the response, fully aware this time how the boy clenched his left fist.

"Itachi." Sasuke repeated the name. For the boy, it was a bittersweet feeling to say his brothers name with such sadness, considering he'd hated that name at some point in time. That name would send shivers through him and wake him up at night as he lay in bed, it would anger him to no ends, but everything was different now. If his suspicions were true, then history had repeat itself and his older brother had been put on another mission. It probably was different this time, but Sasuke had a sicken feeling that he wasn't too far off the mark when it came to the actual events that must've occurred the night of the fire.

The Uchiha clan were know for their ability to use fire. If there was a fire that had occurred that night, they surely would've been able to control it, but never happened. The only conclusion he could make at this moment was that they were unable to do so. That someone slaughtered them all and then set the compound on fire. This would destroy evidence and the bodies in the process and even make the citizens feel at ease due to the fact there was no one to blame the fire on, but the Uchiha's. It could be played off as an unfortunate accident and only the higher ups in the village would truly know what happened that day.

As for who would be the one to do the mission, well, that was obvious in Sasuke's eyes. Itachi had been too damn loyal to this village and no doubt had he agreed to it when he was given the ultimatum.

"I said it because I think I know what happened." He admitted, making sure to keep his suspicions to himself and instead begun to explain what he meant. "Nii-san, he was too strong to die in a fire like that. I just can't accept that. There were too many Uchiha's that wouldn't die that easily. The reason I said his name was because I wanted to know what you would do Sensei. You confirmed my suspicions. Someone killed him. Someone killed my family didn't they?!"

He was trying his best to sound like a naïve student that had come up with some stupid explanation as to how his family died. It was only natural for someone to try to find another reason for the death of their loved ones, any reason other than the one they already knew. Sasuke believed that if maybe there was some other explanation other than they _just_ died from a fire, then maybe it would be easier to deal with. Having someone to _hate_ and getting stronger to _kill_ that person allowed him to forget the pain and suffering of not having a family.

It was sick to think this way, but having someone kill them would be the easier way out.

"Why do you say that, Sasuke-kun?" Kakashi asked, taken back at just how close the boy was to what really happened. However, from the looks of things, it was all something the raven had deducted himself, which from Kakashi's point of view, made everything all the more suspicious.

Was the boy always this smart?

"I-I." Sasuke begun before he let his emotions out. "I just think that there was something more to this, about how they all died. The villagers _hate_ me, I'm shunned by my classmates and I have no one that's there for me. There _must_ be a reason as to why it's like this, right? Because I've tried my best all of this time."

Tears began to fall down his cheeks and Sasuke was sure that his little speech did the trick. Kakashi might not believe everything he said, but maybe he would think that Sasuke wanted some explanation as to why his family died and _that_ was why he said his brother's name.

It was a long shot, especially if Itachi _was_ the one that carried out the mission, but it was all he had at the moment. If he had no other choice later on he'd confess his suspicions to Kakashi, because despite the way the man acted, he was probably one of the most reliable ninja he had ever met.

"Sasuke-kun-" Kakashi began, his voice sounding sympathetic as he started to walk towards the boy. However, he stopped in his tracks as he noticed a flash of yellow coming towards him from the left. It was quick, however the Jonin was quicker and he didn't hesitate to take the boy down. Grabbing the wrist in which held a razor sharp kunei, Kakashi swung the body from his left, toward the set of trees on his right.

"Nice try kid." He said as he watched the blonde fly toward the trees. "But I could see you coming."

"How about this one Sensei?" Came the question before the man felt someone kick his right leg to force the man to lose his balance. It caught Kakashi off guard to say the least however, he let both of his hands catch his fall before he flipped himself up to land on his feet once again.

"Over here." Was the last warning before the man felt someone tug at bells. He looked down to see Sasuke attempting to grab one bells, his fingertips brushing against it and he would have almost gotten it if the Uchiha wasn't standing behind him. Pushing his elbow back, the silver haired man felt it connect with the young boy's face, which ceased the ravens earlier attempts.

This time, Kakashi made sure to jump a few metres away to distance himself from the three.

"Hmm, not bad." He smirked as he looked at the three Genin. Sasuke was holding his nose. Naruto had already gotten up and walked over to the other two and Sakura was glaring at him, probably due to the fact that he had evaded her earlier kick. "You've all got potential."

"However, that was probably the last time you'd be able to get that close," He started as he held up the bells. "to these."

Sasuke scowled as he looked at the man. He knew that the silver haired man was telling the truth because there was no way Kakashi would allow weak Genin like them to out do him more than once. Even if they weren't successful in their first attempt, the man didn't like to lose and Sasuke could bet Kakashi wouldn't allow them to so much as try again.

The raven scanned the training grounds until his eyes landed on something very interesting and in that moment he knew what he was going to do. He only had one chance, but it was the only thing he could think of.

Distract him. That was Sasuke's job and that was exactly what he intended to do.

"Kakashi-sensei." Sasuke begun, carefully choosing his words as he looked into the man's eye. "I have a question for you?"

"What is it?" Kakashi asked as he begun to throw the bells in the air in a teasing manner before catching it once again in his before he repeated the action, the raven could hear the amusement in Kakashi's voice.

"Who gave you that eye?" It was something that Sasuke had always wanted to ask, and although he had been vaguely aware of it's origins, he wanted the actual name of the person.

Although, he doubted the man would tell him.

In that moment, the man froze up completely and allowed the opening the three of them had been waiting for this whole time. In a mere matter of seconds, a flash of yellow jumped out from a nearby tree and grabbed the bells that were currently in mid air. Clutching them in his hands, the blonde landed on his two feet a few meters away from his teacher, just in front of the other three Genin.

The moment he landed, the Naruto that had been standing in between his teammates immediately turned into smoke and disappeared.

"Guess we proved you wrong."Came the confident statement before he held up the bells in a mocking manner. "right, Sensei?"

Behind him, the two other rookies smiled widely as they faced their teacher. It was their victory and despite how happy Sasuke felt, he was eerily aware of the heavy eye that was still looking at him. It was a risk he had to take, and he didn't regret it, but that didn't mean Kakashi would let this go.

He would be questioned. _That_ he could bet on.

The problem was, would he have the answers?


	8. Chapter 8

Sasuke ignored the stare he was getting from Kakashi and instead stood behind his teammates silently.

"Congratulations, Naruto." Kakashi said as he pushed his hands in his pockets and looked at the blonde boy. "You passed. However, the other two still don't have bells."

"That doesn't matter, does it?" The boy smirked. "I figured out your plan."

He watched his teacher raise his eyebrow as he waited for the explanation. "You see, the thing is, you didn't care if we got these bells." He started as he displayed the small bells.

"The reason you fail everyone each year is because they missed the point of this challenge. They thought that if they were able to grab a bell, then they would pass, but that's not what you want."

"You wanted them to work together, because rationally speaking mere Genin had no chance of taking you down alone."

It was silent for a few seconds, and Sasuke noticed that Sakura was coming to her own conclusions as well. She probably had her suspicions up until now, but with Naruto's explanation she was confirming them now.

The sound of a clap echoed through the training grounds moments later. It was slow but eventually the claps became faster and Kakashi's face turned into a smile. Despite the mask covering his mouth, the telltale signs of lines around his visible eye gave it away.

"Looks like you're not as stupid as you seem." Kakashi said before he walked over to the timer that had been placed on the stump and turned it off. He was surprised to say the least that the blonde had figured it out in the end, considering his attention had been on the Uchiha the whole time. It wasn't like he underestimated Naruto, he was Minato-sensei's son after all, among other things, but he had to admit that the way things had been going he believed Sasuke was closer to figuring out the real intentions of the mission.

He'd make sure next time to keep an eye out for the blonde.

"You all pass. Meet me here tomorrow at the same time. We start missions soon." He said. "You're dismissed."

As he watched the three of them begin to file out he spoke up once again. "Not you, Sasuke."

The other two stopped as they heard those words and turned around immediately. "What do you want with Sasuke?" Sakura questioned.

"Personal matters." Was all she got in response and Kakashi noticed the way Naruto gritted his teeth.

"Do whatever you want." The blonde scoffed before storming out of the grounds. Sakura soon followed after him, yelling for him to stop so she could catch up, he never did.

Once the two kids were gone, Sasuke turned his attention back to Kakashi, who was currently leaning against one of the trees, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What did you want to talk about, Sensei?" He asked, the question sounding innocent enough.

"I'll tell you this one time. You answer the questions I ask you honestly." He demanded.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"Depends on what your answers are." Kakashi explained before he walked towards the boy, only stopping until he was close enough to be towering over him.

"First, what did you mean by your earlier question?" He demanded.

"Wh-" Sasuke began to question before he was pushed against the tree behind him. His back was sharply scraping against the trunk as he looked up towards his teacher, he could tell Kakashi was not playing around anymore.

"I shouldn't be doing this to student, but if you can't answer my question I'd have a reason to believe your someone other than Sasuke Uchiha."

"Now talk."

It took Sasuke a few seconds to gather his thoughts. "I-I heard it from my father. When he was still alive." He begun feeling the grip slightly loosen to allow him to talk.

"I over heard a conversation about you once. He was talking about someone in possession of a sharingan in the village." He explained. "He sounded mad when he spoke but from what I could remember the person he was talking with that said, 'Kakashi's a nuisance to the Uchiha, he has no right to possess _his_ eye.' "

"That's all I heard, but I remembered you because I didn't believe there was someone other than an Uchiha that had a sharingan. I just wanted to know if it was true."

"Why didn't you ask if I had it then?" Came the immediate rebuttal.

"Because, anyone could guess that from the information I had. You covered one of your eyes, it was pretty obvious to me. However, the one thing that I knew that would make you lower your guard was to question who you got it from." Sasuke explained, making sure his explanation sounded reasonable. " If I was wrong then you wouldn't fall for it, you'd brush it aside as a stupid question, but if I was right then the person that gave you that eye _died_. When you bring up a loved one, that's when a ninja hesitates."

"Those who have lost everyone tend to forget that there were people whom they once cherished." Sasuke explained before he met the eye of his teacher. "It's no different for you, right?"

The grip finally disappeared and Kakashi took a step back. "So you except me to believe that the dead last of the academy came up up with a plan like that in a mere matter of minutes?"

"No, but I just don't think that you should judge me on that fact that I was the worst student back in the academy. " He stated. "See the thing is I was never interested in what they taught me. Sure, I might've been loud and seemed like I tried my best all the time, but that was only to get the attention of the others."

"For what reason?"

"So they acknowledged me!" He shouted, making sure the other heard the anger in his voice. "So they could acknowledge I _still_ existed even if everyone around me would prefer that not to be true."

"And failing everything was your grand plan?" Kakashi asked, his words almost accusing, as if to say he wasn't buying the explanation.

"No, but after awhile I just realized that it was the only way they would pay attention. I could _never_ beat Naruto, so I wouldn't be the top of the class, even if I was, it would probably only anger them more. I'm not selling you some story, I'm telling you the truth and if you think that just because I was able to throw you off guard more than once during this test makes me suspicious then why don't you start worrying about your other student."

"You mean Naruto?"

"He seems more obsessed about revenge than you think he is."

"I'm fully aware of that."

Sasuke didn't bother to say anything after that. He waited patiently for the man to make his next move.

"That's all for today." He stated before turning and walking away leaving Sasuke in his wake.

* * *

Sasuke let his back slide down the tree trunk until he was sitting on the ground once Kakashi had left. He didn't say anything, nor did he move, but after awhile he could feel his stomach telling him that he needed food. Silently, he got up from his spot on the ground and jumped onto a nearby tree. He'd head back to his apartment for now and decide on what to do later.

If his suspicions were true, then Kakashi was going to tell the Hokage about what information he had gathered from Sasuke. First, he had _almost_ revealed a Justu that he had learned from Kakashi himself, then he had given the man a reason to question him about his family because he had said his brother's name, and the worst part was he had revealed that he knew Kakashi had a Sharingan.

He'd have to play his cards carefully from now on, but there was two things he knew he had to do. The first was to stop that idiot of a teammate he had from trying anything stupid when it came to revenge. The second one, well, it was to find his brother of course.

Sasuke stopped as he reached the first set of houses. Jumping down from the branch he was standing he let himself land on the road just in front of a shop. The streets were busy this time of day, considering it was just around lunch time, but Sasuke didn't mind the amount of people walking around. He found it oddly comforting. Maybe it was because he was so used to being alone.

The layout of the shops and streets were just as he had remembered and with ease he maneuvered himself towards his new apartment. It was odd that a place which was so familiar to him could be so different at the same time. This wasn't the place he grew up in, these weren't the people that he had seen pass by him everyday on his way to the academy, this wasn't his life.

Yet, he had to keep things from turning out the way they had in his time life. Naruto was not going to be driven to leave the village and Itachi wasn't going to die by his hands. He just had to come up with a plan to do both of those things without revealing his identity. He'd make sure this time that Itachi had the justice he deserved. As much as he couldn't understand why his brother had been so loyal towards the village, he did understandd one thing, that his brother had been used by the higher ups of the village.

They had given Itachi only two options because they hadn't been interested in what happened to the Uchiha clan, in other words they had been expendable and a nuisance to the village in the elder's eyes, in _that_ man's eyes. He hated to think back to the decisions he made in life, but it angered him to know that a lowlife like that man had lived his life happily after countless people had died under his orders. Yes, he killed Danzo, and looking back on that decision now he wasn't proud of it, but for someone like him to be able to walk around the _very_ village his brother had sacrificed everything for made Sasuke livid.

Itachi was the one treated like a criminal if he so much as stepped foot in Konoha after the massacre, yet Danzo was able to walk freely like he wasn't the one that had given those very orders for the massacre to be executed. As for the rest of the elders, well Sasuke had his grudge against them as well, but he had always wondered one thing, why did the third let everything happen?

It wasn't like Sasuke had a particularly close relationship with the man, but he had respected him to some extent when he was a child. The third hokage was one of the strongest ninja in the village and on top of that he was also in charge of giving the final orders on a mission. If he had been the one to give the final orders, then why did he allow Itachi to go through with the whole thing. Hadn't the Uchiha clan looked up to him once? Weren't there still children that were too young to know what was right from wrong yet? Had they deserved to die as well?

Had the third even taken into account all of the innocent lives that had been caught in the crossfire? Sasuke didn't think so, if he had he wouldn't have even entertained the idea of a massacre.

"You okay?" He heard a voice ask from behind him. He was now standing in front of a barbeque place near the edge of the shopping district and from the looks of things, he had been so caught up in his thoughts he hadn't realized that someone had approached him from behind.

"Yes." He said, turning around to look at the familiar face of an old ally. It wasn't like he hadn't sensed the charka signature already, but it did surprise him that the boy was alone. "It's nothing, Shikamaru."

"Didn't seem like it." Came the statement, however Sasuke could tell the boy seem slightly concerned than anything else, Shikamaru had never been one to stick his nose in other people's business unless he needed to.

"I-It's really nothing. I'm just hungry that's all." He stated as he let one of his hands rest on his stomach.

"You should join us then."

It took a few moments to understand what the boy was telling him, before the raven gestured to the place behind Sasuke. "Our teams supposed to have lunch here, Asuma-sensei's buying."

"Oh..." Came the reply, as Sasuke began to gather his thoughts. He had never considered the two of them good friends before, but with the offer extended to him Sasuke decided it wouldn't hurt to accept. "But wouldn't he mind if I joined? I don't really have much money."

"Since when did you turn down food, Sasuke?" The spikey haired boy questioned as he raised his eyebrow in curiousity.

Sasuke gritted his teeth as he realized he was being too polite with the boy, knowing that Naruto would have accepted the offer without a seconds hesitation. He would also act overly friendly with anyone he met. It was annoying to keep up such a stupid persona, but for now he'd have to bare with it.

"Was just wondering, yunno, since Choji's probably gonna eat a ton already, I wasn't too sure if Asuma-sensei could afford it if he includes me." He laughed as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Trust me, he's got plenty of money, considering he _knows_ Choji's gonna eat a lot. I'm sure he'd have a little extra to spare."

"Guess I can't pass up free food then." He said with a smile as he sensed the other three chakra signatures approaching them. Turning, Sasuke watched the group walk towards the establishment. Choji was smiling happily, Ino looked annoyed and Asuma looked indifferent.

"What is _he_ doing here." He heard the sneer from the blonde.

"He's having lunch with us." The spikey haired boy replied, ignoring the way the girl fumed more as she heard the response. "If that's okay with you, Sensei?"

Asuma looked from Shikamaru to Sasuke and back to Shikamaru. He paused for a moment before smiling and patting Sasuke on the back. "Sure, one more wouldn't hurt."

"Well, if he was someone with the same appitite as Chouji I'm sure it would..." Shikamaru whispered more to himself than anyone else, but nevertheless Sasuke heard it. He surpressed a laugh and instead opted to smile. He'd forgotten how amusing the spikey haired boy could be at times, then again he had never been interested in humor much.

The four students filed into the restaurant moments later as Asuma followed slowly behind. He observed the Uchiha with watchful eyes, slightly surprised at how quiet he was being considering how loud-mouthed the brat usually was, but then again he might be shy. It wasn't everyday that someone extended any sort of kindness towards the raven.

Approaching the front desk, the older man notified the staff how much people he had in his party and soon after a pretty looking waitress lead them to a booth near the window. Slowly they seated themselves one by one, Shikamaru ended up being squished between Ino and Sasuke and Asuma sat next to Chouji. The raven didn't particularly complain about the seating arrangements, however he didn't like the fact that he was seated across from the Jonin. He'd have to be careful with his words during this lunch, if he didn't want to accidently reveal something he shouldn't have.

It took a few minutes for them to settle themselves in, but once they did Ino was the first to speak up.

"If you didn't know already, we passed the little challenge Sensei had for us this morning." She announced before smiling triumphantly. He figured as much, they had always been good with teamwork, especially when he compared it to his own teams teamwork.

"Congratulations." He said, remembering to add a small smile in before he continued. "But don't think you're team's stronger than mine! We passed so fast Kakashi-sensei didn't even see it coming."

Oh, he sounded stupid.

"That's definitely a lie." Came the monotone voice next to him, before they looked up to see the waitress that approaching them with a tray of food. There was a platter of uncooked vegetables in one hand and in the other there was an assortment of meat.

"Here you go." She smiled sweetly, placing them down. "If you need anything, just ask." She said politely before turning to leave.

"More meat-" Chouji began to say before he was kicked under the table by his teammate. "Ow, Shikamaru-"

"What was that?" The women asked as she turned around again.

"Nothing." Ino said dismissively and shot the Akamichi a glare. "It was nothing."

Nodding, the women once again excused herself and let the five ninja eat in piece. It didn't take very long before the topic about the tests were brought up.

"So, I'm guessing you failed then? I expected as much, what were they thinking letting _you_ and billboard brow on the same team as Naruto-kun." Ino said as she placed a few vegetables on the grill in front of them. "He's got way more potential than you guys."

"Ino, watch you words." Came the chide from her Sensei and immediately the girl shrunk back in her seat. "I'm sure Kakashi didn't make it easy on you. You know what they call him, right?"

"A pervert." Came the scoff. He guessed he liked saying whatever he wanted sometimes. Watching the man in front of him choke on his spite, Sasuke regarded him with a coy smile before adding. "Isn't that right?"

The other three students looked curiously towards their Sensei as they waited for any inclination to suggest this statement was true. "You'll get your chance next year, I'm sure." He said simply as he tired to hid the small chuckle behind a smile.

"We passed." He stated.

"Really?" Chouji asked as he continued to stack on the pieces of meat onto the grill, completely oblivious to what the raven had just admitted. "That's great."

"Are you even listening to him?" Ino glared from across the table, "He's lying, there's no way they passed."

"Is that so, Sasuke-kun?" Asuma asked, as he raised his eyebrow slightly, clearly skeptical of the confession.

"Yeah, surprisingly we caught Kakashi-sensei off guard." He said, playing with the raw vegetable on the grill, as he pretended that it was more interesting than making eye contact with anyone at the table. He absentmindedly noted the way the flames rose up to surround the mushroom as the edges began to char slowly. He already could tell most of the eyes at the table were on him, excluding Chouji of course. "I didn't think we'd actually get it though, but with my brilliant techniques and Sakura-chan helping me along the way, it wasn't as hard as I thought."

Looking up, Sasuke displayed a wide smile before he added. "Oh, Naruto helped us out too, but it was mostly all me."

This time, he wasn't particularly lying, yet he could tell no one believed his little story.

"Well, that's surprising." Came the statement, "Kakashi _actually_ passing students."

"Maybe he sees my potential." Sasuke said with a smug grin plastered across his face before let out a few small punches in front of him. "My skills are top notch anyways, before you know it I'll be a Jonin."

"Yeah, that's probably why he passed you guys." Asuma nodded, entertaining the smaller boys delusional thoughts as they continued to eat. Sasuke could see the other was very much amused by the explanation he had come up with. No doubt he would rely everything back to the silver haired Jonin later and the raven only wished he could see the expression on the man's face when he did.

"Hmph, I bet Naruto-kun did all the work." Ino whispered, but Sasuke none the less caught the comment. It didn't bother him at all, considering he'd rather keep his strength to himself and be thought of as weak, but he still didn't like to be reminded that he _was_ considered the weakest among the newly graduated students.

Pushing the thoughts aside, Sasuke let the conversation drift else where and before long subject was no longer on him. The rest of the lunch went by peacefully and the raven found it oddly nice to share such company with people he once knew. It filled him in on the fact that despite the reversal of he and Naruto's personalities, everyone else was more or less the same.

It was good to know, considering that if the timeline went as he expected, before long they'd be heading out to the land of waves. He wondered how it would play out this only hoped his plan would work, because he knew that once they came back from that mission, it would be time for the Chunin exams.

And he sure as hell remembered how that went the _first_ time around.


End file.
